Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities

Renewable Energy: Planning Permission

Mr Peter Bone: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what recent assessment he has made of the impact of the planning system on on-farm renewable energy projects.

Felicity Buchan: National planning policy is clear that local authorities should have a positive strategy in place to promote energy from renewable and low carbon sources such as solar plants.The Government also recognises the need to preserve our most productive farmland. The National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) is clear that planning decisions should 'contribute to and enhance the natural and local environment' by recognising the 'benefits of the best and most versatile agricultural land'. Where significant development of agricultural land is shown to be necessary, the Framework sets out that areas of poorer quality land should be used in preference to those of a higher quality.The Government recently consulted on proposed changes to the NPPF, which includes a change relating to food security, building on what is already in the NPPF on preserving most productive farmland. Ministers and officials are currently analysing the responses received before issuing a formal response.

Microgeneration

Mike Amesbury: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, whether his Department plans to take steps to require domestic renewable energy generators installed in new build homes after 2025 to be installed to Microgeneration Certificate Scheme standards.

Mike Amesbury: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, whether new homes will be connected to the gas grid after 2025 when the Future Homes Standard is introduced.

Mike Amesbury: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, whether MCS Standards for renewable installations in new builds will be part of the Future Homes Standard.

Mike Amesbury: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, whether the Future Homes Standard will include standards for the installation of energy supply systems using energy from renewable sources; and whether he is taking steps to ensure quality control of such installations.

Mike Amesbury: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, whether gas boilers will be installed in new build homes after 2025 when the Future Homes Standard comes into effect.

Lee Rowley: The Future Homes Standard is intended to ensure that new homes use low carbon heating and have very high levels of energy efficiency.The Building Regulations will continue to set a performance-based standard rather than mandating or banning the use of any technologies, to enable innovation and tailoring to individual sites.We intend to consult on the technical specification of the Future Homes Standard in due course. As part of that, we will explore what installation standards are appropriate.

Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities: Staff

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, pursuant to the Answer of 28 March 2023 to Question 166164 on Government Departments: Staff, how many and what proportion of respondents to the most recent Leesman office survey undertaken by his Department (a) agreed and (b) disagreed with the statements about their main workplace that (i) it enables me to work productively, (ii) it supports me sharing ideas and knowledge amongst colleagues, (iii) it creates an enjoyable environment to work in, (iv) it contributes to a sense of community at work, and (v) it's a place I'm proud to bring visitors to.

Dehenna Davison: The department does not currently hold this data for its Wolverhampton or London offices, at which a significant majority of its employees are based

Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities: Disability

Vicky Foxcroft: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what proportion of people employed within his Department have recorded that they have a disability.

Dehenna Davison: I refer the Hon. Member to the publicly available data here.

Community Ownership Fund: Northern Ireland

Stephen Farry: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what level of feedback is normally given to unsuccessful applicants to the Community Ownership Fund in Northern Ireland.

Stephen Farry: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, if he will make it his policy to provide unsuccessful applicants to the Community Ownership Fund in Northern Ireland feedback on their application.

Stephen Farry: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, whether his Department has issued guidance on the allocation of Community Ownership Fund resources to more than one project in a similar geographical area.

Stephen Farry: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, if he will make an assessment of the adequacy of the threshold criteria for capital funding for arts and culture projects in Northern Ireland under the Community Ownership Fund in the context of the size of that sector relative to its counterpart in Great Britain.

Dehenna Davison: Applications to the Community Ownership Fund (COF) are assessed against a fair and transparent framework that is publicly available on gov.uk. The Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities can exercise discretion when making funding decisions on shortlisted bids to ensure, where possible, a balanced spread of projects across all parts of the United Kingdom.All applicants are required to demonstrate how the benefits of the community asset will address community need in their local place. Applicants must evidence the work undertaken with the community to understand the potential uses of the asset and how the community would benefit, including references to other local activities and plans in the area and how the proposal fits within these. Projects which make the strongest case for community benefit will be shortlisted for funding.Unsuccessful applicants are provided with feedback on where their application has failed against the assessment criteria as set out on gov.uk. This process is consistent for all applications.We consider applications from voluntary and community organisations from all parts of the United Kingdom which have a viable plan for taking ownership of a community asset at risk and running it sustainably for community benefit. The fund supports a broad range of asset types and the nature and purpose of the asset are varied.So far, at least 43% of projects in Northern Ireland are helping to promote arts and culture in their local community, among many other wider benefits. For example, through their Aurora project, the St Columbs Hall Trust aim to advance arts, culture and heritage in their community, and advance education by providing training arts facilities. A significant number of COF projects also have a creative element to their project and support the arts.

Private Rented Housing: Pets

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, if his Department will take steps to implement the proposals on pets in rental accommodation in his white paper entitled A fairer private rented sector published on 22 June 2022.

Kim Leadbeater: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, with reference to his Department's White Paper entitled A Fairer Private Rented Sector, published 16 June 2022, what his Department's policy is on what actions would constitute a landlord unreasonably withholding consent when considering a tenant’s request to a pet.

Kim Leadbeater: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, with reference to his Department's White Paper entitled A Fairer Private Rented Sector, what the process is for tenants to challenge a landlord’s decision to withhold consent for having pets in a rented property.

Kim Leadbeater: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, if it remains his Department's policy to make pet insurance a permitted payment under the Tenant Fees Act 2019.

Rachel Maclean: I refer the Hon Member to the answer given to Question UIN 176692 on 21 April 2023.

Private Rented Housing: Pets

Henry Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what recent discussions he has had with animal welfare organisations on reforms to rules around renting to people with pets.

Rachel Maclean: Further to the answer given in response to Question UIN 174324 on 3 April 2023, we will legislate to give tenants in the private rented sector a legal ‘right to request a pet’ that the landlord must consider and cannot unreasonably refuse. We know that some landlords are concerned about the potential damage caused by pets, so we will also allow landlords to require insurance covering pet damage. We will legislate in the Renters Reform Bill when parliamentary time allows.We plan to publish guidance for tenants and landlords on what would constitute an unreasonable refusal of a pet before the new rules come into effect and we will provide detail on how tenants can challenge decisions in due course.Ministerial meetings with external organisations are published on GOV.UK. Officials in the department continue to engage with external stakeholders whilst developing policies for pets in the private rented sector and have discussed the proposals with animal welfare organisations.

Private Rented Housing

Holly Mumby-Croft: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what steps his Department is taking to help increase the availability of private rental properties in England.

Rachel Maclean: The Government is driving up the supply of new homes by supporting diversification of the market, investing in affordable housing, and increasing land supply for new homes by investing in infrastructure. We also remain committed to continue working towards our ambition of delivering 300,000 homes per year to help create a more sustainable and affordable housing market.We welcome new institutional investment in the Private Rented Sector and have made interventions to support the Build to Rent sector. Build to Rent boosts housing supply, diversifies the private rental sector, and increases quality and choice for renters in cities and towns across England.

Private Rented Housing: Pets

Henry Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, with reference to the Department's White Paper entitled A Fairer Private Rented Sector, published 16 June 2022, whether he has made an assessment of the implications for his polices of pets considered tenancies.

Rachel Maclean: We will publish a full Impact Assessment of the policies proposed in the White Paper ‘A Fairer Private Rented Sector’ when we bring forward legislation.

Housing: Construction

Christopher Pincher: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what assessment he has made of the consequences for his policies of the use of Modern Methods of Construction categories (a) 1, (b) 2, (c) 3 and (d) 4 in the production of new homes in England since March 2019.

Christopher Pincher: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, with reference to the MMC Definition Framework, published March 2019, what assessment his Department has made of the effectiveness of the Modern Methods of Construction Categories (a) 5, (b) 6, and (c) 7 on the production of new homes in England.

Rachel Maclean: The Government is committed to supporting the development and use of modern methods of construction (MMC) which has the capability of unlocking a range of benefits including increased energy efficiency, quicker delivery of new homes and improving the diversity of the housing sector.

Leasehold: Service Charges

Dr Rosena Allin-Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what steps he is taking to support leaseholders with service and administration charges in the context of increases in the cost of living.

Rachel Maclean: I refer the hon. Member to the answers given by my hon. Friend at Oral Questions on 27 March 2023 (Official Report, HC, Volume 730, Column 644).

Private Rented Housing: Sales

Christopher Pincher: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, pursuant to the Answer of 23 March 2023 to Question 166199 on Private Rented Housing: Sales, if he will make an estimate of the proportion of properties sold by small landlords that are purchased by (a) private buyers for personal residential use, (b) renters, (c) other UK-based landlords for rental purposes, (d) overseas-based landlords for rental purposes, (e) domestic buyers for development purposes and (f) overseas buyers for development purposes; and if he will make an assessment of the implications for his policies of each of these types of the buyers buying properties.

Rachel Maclean: The department does not hold the data requestedThe department's main source of data on private landlords is the English Private Landlord Survey. As part of the English Private Landlord Survey, we collect data on landlords' plans for their portfolio.It is important we have a housing market that works for everyone. The Government is driving up the supply of new homes by diversifying the market; investing in affordable housing; and increasing land supply for new homes by investing in infrastructure.

Derelict Land

Yasmin Qureshi: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what recent assessment he has made of the impact of the Brownfield Land Release Fund on (a) retrofits of industrial buildings, (b) housing pressures, (c) economic growth and (d) place-based renewal.

Rachel Maclean: The Brownfield Land Release Fund was launched in April 2021 and is supporting local authorities to release their surplus brownfield sites for housing by March 2024.

Leasehold

Tulip Siddiq: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, whether it is his Department's policy that all tenants should be notified of proposals to enfranchise the property they are occupying; and whether all tenants are required to consent to (a) proposals to enfranchise and (b) building extensions.

Rachel Maclean: The Government is committed to making it easier and cheaper for leaseholders to purchase the freehold of their building.There is no current requirement for all tenants to be notified of proposals for collective freehold acquisition, or for all tenants to consent to a collective freehold acquisition.The Law Commission have set out a number of recommendations intended to improve the right of collective freehold acquisition. We will respond in due course.Individual leases set out landlord and leaseholder rights and restrictions in altering their property, including whether landlord consent is required. Building extensions, whether instigated by the landlord or leaseholder, must comply with relevant planning and building regulation obligations.

Housing: Sales

Damien Moore: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what assessment his Department has made of the trends in the number of house sales in the housing market in the last six months; and what steps his Department is taking to help increase the number of property sales.

Rachel Maclean: Information about property sales in the UK is published every month by HM Revenue and Customs and can be found here. We committed to improving the home buying and selling process in the Levelling Up White Paper, by working with industry to ensure that potential buyers have access to critical information in an accurate and timely digital format.

Children's Play: Equipment

Justin Tomlinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, if he will take steps to create additional guidance on accessible play equipment in the National Model Design Code, published on 20 July 2021.

Rachel Maclean: The Government has set a clear vision to improve the everyday lives of disabled people as set out in the National Disability Strategy, to ensure that disability is not a barrier to people living full, independent lives where they can reach their full potential.The Government’s guidance on creating well-designed places – the National Design Guide and the National Model Design Code are both part of the suite of national planning practice guidance that supports the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF).The NPPF encourages the creation of places that are safe, inclusive and accessible and which promote health and well-being. In support of this, the National Model Design Code encourages the design of children's play areas to be inclusive and accessible. This document is intended to provide broad design principles. It is not within the scope of the document to provide expert advice on accessible play equipment.There is independent and voluntary best practice guidance in the form of British and European standards on inclusive built environments including play areas and playgrounds, and for children’s play equipment. BS 8300-1:2018, BS EN 17210:2021 and BS EN 1176:2017. Their status is independent of government guidance. Local authorities can choose to use these voluntary best practice standards.

Leasehold: Reform

Mr Barry Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what progress his Department has made on leasehold reform.

Rachel Maclean: The Government has legislated via the Leasehold Reform (Ground Rent) Act 2022 to protect future leaseholders. Further announcements will be made in the usual way.

Ministry of Justice

Norwich Prison: Prisoners' Release

James Wild: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of HMP Norwich’s Employment Advisory Board in developing  links with private sector employers.

Damian Hinds: We know that employment reduces the chance of reoffending significantly, by up to nine percentage points. The Boards are part of our plans to improve prison leavers’ employment outcomes and build stronger links with employers.I am grateful to James Timpson for his support in setting up the Boards, as well as to business leaders from household names such as Lotus Cars at HMP Norwich, Greggs at HMP Kirklevington Grange and TalkTalk at HMP Thorn Cross for stepping up to the challenge of chairing them.I understand that the Board at HMP Norwich has brought new employer partnerships to the prison and supported events such as an employer’s open day for employers and prisoners, as well as providing valuable links with the Chamber of Commerce and the High Sherriff, who attend the Board’s meetings.

Department for Business and Trade

Post Offices

James Wild: To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what discussions she has had with (a) Post Office Ltd and (b) Royal Mail on the potential impact of the withdrawal of Mailwork contracts on the viability of post offices.

Kevin Hollinrake: Government is aware of concerns around the impact removing Mailworks could have on individual post office branches and understands Post Office Limited has raised these concerns directly with Royal Mail.Mailworks contracts are commercial matters for both companies and Government has no involvement in these matters. There would be a six-month notice period if Royal Mail were to decide to remove a Mailworks contract. Post Office would continue to work closely with an affected postmaster if notice were given.The Government-set Access Criteria ensures that 99% of the population will continue to live within three miles of a post office.

Exports: Small Businesses

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, whether she plans to provide extra support to the Export Support Service to enable it to assist small firms; and if she will make a statement.

Nigel Huddleston: I refer the Honourable Member to the answer I gave to Written PQ 177814.

Funerals

Alexander Stafford: To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, whether she is taking steps to require funeral firms to offer compensation to customers when funerals are cancelled at short notice.

Kevin Hollinrake: The Consumer Rights Act 2015 gives consumers rights to redress and refunds including when businesses cancel services that have been agreed. The Competition and Markets Authority recently carried out a market investigation into the funerals sector to ensure these rules were being observed. They have issued guidance to businesses in the sector on their obligations to consumers. Details can be found at: https://competitionandmarkets.blog.gov.uk/2023/01/27/helping-businesses-comply-with-the-funerals-order/. Consumers can seek free advice on their rights from the Citizens Advice consumer service on 0808 223 1133 (www.citizensadvice.org.uk/). The Financial Conduct Authority regulates prepaid funeral plans. Details can be found at: https://www.fca.org.uk/news/press-releases/fca-regulation-boosts-consumer-protection-funeral-plans-market.

Employment: Disclosure of Information

Dame Margaret Hodge: To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, with reference to the review of the whistleblowing framework announced by her Department on 27 March 2023, whether that review will consider the potential merits of establishing an independent Office of the Whistleblower.

Kevin Hollinrake: The review will consider evidence related to the effectiveness of the whistleblowing framework in meeting its intended objectives: to enable workers to come forward to speak up about wrongdoing, and to protect those who do so against detriment and dismissal.The full Terms of Reference for the review are published at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/review-of-the-whistleblowing-framework/review-of-the-whistleblowing-framework-terms-of-reference.

Foreign Investment in Uk

Mr Jonathan Lord: To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what steps her Department is taking to help secure more inward investment into the UK.

Nigel Huddleston: The UK's foreign direct investment (FDI) stock is largest in Europe, second to the US globally. The Department for Business and Trade (DBT) plays a crucial role in attracting and retaining this investment, present in over 150 countries through international networks. DBT supports investors new to the UK by providing insight on finance, skills and visas. Alongside the Office for Investment, we help investors with site selection, customer connections and market expertise. In 2021/22, DBT supported nearly 1,200 investments worth approximately £7 billion of economic impact over the next three years. The Global Investment Summit 2023 will build on this success, aiming to raise billions of high value investment.

Business: Overseas Trade

Marion Fellows: To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, if she will make an assessment of the potential impact of (a) malaria and (b) other global health issues on recent levels of trade by UK businesses with (i) countries in the Commonwealth and (ii) other countries with a high level of malaria.

Marion Fellows: To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, whether her Department has made an assessment of the impact of malaria and other global health issues on the UK’s overseas trade with countries disproportionately affected by malaria and tropical diseases, including trade with Commonwealth countries.

Nigel Huddleston: The Department for Business and Trade (DBT) is an economic growth department that will support British businesses to invest, grow and export, creating jobs and prosperity across the UK; such health assessments fall outside its remit.

Home Office

Asylum: Applications

Tim Farron: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many and what proportion of asylum applications were submitted by people who arrived in the UK (a) irregularly by (i) small boat and (ii) other means and (b) through a safe and legal route in 2022.

Robert Jenrick: The Home Office publishes statistics on asylum claims from small boat arrivals in ‘4. Asylum claims from small boat arrivals’ of the ‘Irregular Migration to the UK statistics’ report.Data on detected irregular arrivals by method of entry are published in table Irr_D01 of the ‘Irregular migration to the UK detailed dataset’ of the ‘Irregular Migration to the UK statistics’.The Home Office does not publish how many irregular arrivals who do not arrive by small boats have claimed asylum. Official statistics published by the Home Office are kept under review in line with the Code of Practice for Statistics, taking into account a number of factors including user needs, as well as quality and availability of data.The latest data relate to the year ending December 2022. Data for the year ending March 2023 will be published on 25 May 2023. Information on future Home Office statistical release dates can be found in the ‘Research and statistics calendar’.Please note, asylum applications are not a recognised 'safe and legal entry route' to the UK. The safe and legal entry routes are country-specific and global:Resettlement, including UNHCR schemes (UK Resettlement scheme, mandate scheme, and community sponsorship), as well as the Afghan Resettlement ProgrammeFamily reunion visasBN(O) Hong Kong visasUkraine Family, Sponsorship and Extension Scheme visas

Asylum: Housing

Seema Malhotra: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what her Department's definition is of essential living needs in the context of accommodation for asylum seekers.

Robert Jenrick: Support provided under section 95 of the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999 is usually provided in the form of accommodation (with no utility bills or Council Tax to pay) and a weekly cash allowance to cover the asylum seeker’s other essential living needs. Free access to healthcare and schooling is also provided.The weekly cash allowance for those in dispersed accommodation is intended to meet the seven essential living needs which are: food and non-alcoholic drinks, clothing, communications, travel, non-prescription medicine, toiletries and laundry.Our reports on this can be found here: Report on review of cash allowance paid to asylum seekers - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)

Asylum: Housing

Rachael Maskell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what recent assessment she has made of the potential merits of allowing people to register to house people awaiting an asylum decision.

Robert Jenrick: The government has a legal obligation under the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999 to provide asylum seekers who would otherwise be destitute with accommodation and other support whilst their claim for asylum is being considered. Ongoing work across government is being undertaken to identify and secure alternative, more appropriate, cost-effective accommodation options around the country.

Asylum: Bolton South East

Yasmin Qureshi: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will make an estimate of how many (a) outstanding asylum claims there are from people in and (b) refugees there are in Bolton South East constituency as of 30 March 2023.

Robert Jenrick: Whilst the Home Office holds data on the address of asylum claimants and those granted asylum, this information is not held in a reportable format and could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.Therefore, the Home Office is unable to provide the number of (a) outstanding asylum claims from claimants and (b) the number of refugees currently residing in Bolton South East constituency as of 30 March 2023.

Northern Ireland Strategic Migration Partnership

Stephen Farry: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the role and responsibilities of the Northern Ireland Strategic Migration Partnership are.

Stephen Farry: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether her Department is conducting community engagement on dispersed asylum seekers in Northern Ireland.

Stephen Farry: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether the Government has provided additional support to new asylum dispersal areas in Northern Ireland for (a) healthcare, (b) education, (c) English language lessons, (d) access to legal representation and (e) other essential services .

Robert Jenrick: The Strategic Migration Partnership in Northern Ireland is not currently functioning. However, discussions are ongoing to restore the partnership and its roles and responsibilities will be determined when it is re-established. In the meantime, the Home Office continues to work collaboratively with partners in Northern Ireland on matters previously covered by the Strategic Migration Partnership.Full Dispersal funding was made available to the Executive Office in the 2022/2023 financial year and an enhanced package has been approved for the 2023/2024 financial year. The Executive Office has full autonomy in how this funding is distributed.The Home Office does not conduct community engagement on dispersed asylum seekers in any region.

Asylum: Northern Ireland

Stephen Farry: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what additional funding the Government has provided to charity and voluntary organisations providing support to asylum seekers in Northern Ireland.

Robert Jenrick: Funding for Northern Ireland is provided to the Northern Ireland Executive Office under the full dispersal model - this is un-ringfenced funding. We do not fund charities and voluntary organisations directly to support asylum seekers under full dispersal.

Home Office: Departmental Responsibilities

John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, which Minister holds the responsibilities previously held by the Minister for Afghan Resettlement.

Robert Jenrick: I refer the Rt Hon member to my response to Question 175503 on 18 April 2023: Written questions and answers - Written questions, answers and statements - UK Parliament.

Asylum: Epilepsy

Kirsten Oswald: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many asylum applications from people with epilepsy were (a) granted, (b) refused, (c) withdrawn and (d) pending a decision in each year since 2010.

Robert Jenrick: This data is not held in a reportable format, not routinely published, and could only be obtained at disproportionate cost as it requires a manual search of individual records.

Home Office: Electronic Government

Rachael Maskell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether her Department uses digital workforce tools, including information on staff complements and pay grades, to plan workforce requirements in UK Visas and Immigration to help determine its processing times.

Robert Jenrick: UK Visas and Immigration utilise a number of internal management tools and management data, including intake estimates created by the Home Office Analysis and Insight team, to develop workforce plans and recruitment plans to process estimated intake volumes.

Immigration: Detainees

John McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether her Department publishes information on the number of deaths in immigration detention.

Robert Jenrick: Published Home Office Detention Services Order 08/2014 Deaths in detention provides guidance as to the actions that Home Office and contracted supplier staff must take in the event of a death in detention. The Home Office publish annual data on deaths in detention as part of the Immigration System Statistics Quarterly Release. The annual data for 2017 to 2021 are included in table Det_05b in the Detention summary tables.

Colnbrook Immigration Removal Centre: Bereavement Counselling

John McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether her Department is taking steps to provide counselling and bereavement support to people at Colnbrook Immigration Removal Centre.

Robert Jenrick: Published Home Office Detention Services Order 08/2014 Deaths in detention provides guidance as to the actions that Home Office and contracted supplier staff must take in the event of a death in detention. The Home Office publish annual data on deaths in detention as part of the Immigration System Statistics Quarterly Release. The annual data for 2017 to 2021 are included in table Det_05b in the Detention summary tables.

Asylum: Detention Centres and Temporary Accommodation

Rachael Maskell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will make an assessment of the level of fire risk for asylum seekers who are to be relocated to (a) boats or (b) detention centres.

Robert Jenrick: The Home Office will ensure the alternative accommodation sites accommodate asylum seekers on a non-detained basis are safe and legally complaint.

Immigration Removal Centres

John McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps her Department takes to ensure prompt, thorough and transparent investigations when people die at immigration removal centres.

Robert Jenrick: Published Home Office Detention Services Order 08/2014 Deaths in detention provides guidance as to the actions that Home Office and contracted supplier staff must take in the event of a death in detention.The Home Office publish annual data on deaths in detention as part of the Immigration System Statistics Quarterly Release. The annual data for 2017 to 2021 are included in table Det_05b in the Detention summary tables.

Asylum: Hotels

Rachael Maskell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps she is taking to help asylum seekers housed in hotels who have built a relationship with the local community to (a) remain within that community and (b) keep children at the local school.

Rachael Maskell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of housing asylum seekers on local communities.

Rachael Maskell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether her Department is taking steps to ensure that people in temporary asylum accommodation have access to (a) communal leisure and (b) children's play space.

Robert Jenrick: Accommodation is offered on a no-choice basis across the United Kingdom and there are established mechanisms in place via Migrant Help and Support Casework, if individuals have a specific, acute need to be accommodated in a particular area. Accommodation providers may need to move individuals for various reasons. However, we limit the amount of moves that can take place through our contract.

Biometrics: Visas

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether her Department plans to provide support to people who are required to visit a third country for biometric checks to apply for a UK visa.

Robert Jenrick: An individual must, in most circumstances, provide their biometrics, in the form of a facial image and fingerprints, when applying for a visa or a biometric immigration document before they come to the UK. This is to ensure we can confirm their identity and fix them to it, and to conduct background security checks to establish whether they pose a threat to public safety. The Home Office contracts two commercial partners, VFS and TLS Contact, to operate its global network of Visa Application Centres (VACs) who provide application centres in over 230 locations across 138 countries. It is not economically viable for UKVI to have VACs in every city or country across the world and it may not be sustainable to open new locations where volumes are lower. Individuals who are unable to travel to a VAC should not normally make an application until they are able to do so. We have a robust escalation process in place for very exceptional cases where a customer has a compelling reason why they are unable to travel to a VAC.

Asylum: Rwanda

Ms Anum Qaisar: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what recent estimate her Department has made of the cost to the public purse of the UK and Rwanda Migration and Economic Development Partnership.

Robert Jenrick: The UK has provided Rwanda with an initial investment of £120m as part of the Migration and Economic Development Partnership. The UK will also be funding the processing costs for each person relocated, such as caseworkers, legal advice, translators, accommodation, food, healthcare, and for those granted protection, a comprehensive integration package to help them put down roots and start a new life.Costs and payments will depend on the number of individuals relocated, the timing of when this happens, and the outcomes of individual cases. Actual spend will be reported as part of the annual Home Office Reports and Accounts in the usual way.

Asylum: Passenger Ships

Seema Malhotra: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether cruise ships accommodating asylum seekers will be docked in port rather than moored at sea.

Seema Malhotra: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will make an estimate of the potential cost to her Department of staffing and supplying cruise ships for the purpose of accommodation for asylum seekers.

Robert Jenrick: The government has a legal obligation under Immigration and Asylum Act 1999 to provide asylum seekers who would otherwise be destitute with accommodation and other support whilst their claim for asylum is being considered.Ongoing work across government is being undertaken to identify and secure alternative, more appropriate, cost-effective accommodation options around the country.In exploring potential alternative large sites, we continue to consider all available options to source more appropriate and cost-effective temporary accommodation.

Immigration: Enforcement

Stephen Farry: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of recording outcomes after a victim is referred to the Home Office’s enforcement unit.

Robert Jenrick: The outcomes of those entering the Migrant Victims Protocol (MVP) will be monitored and recorded.

Asylum: Afghanistan

Catherine West: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether Afghan asylum seekers housed in UK hotels will be offered permanent accommodation (a) in the same area as those hotels and (b) which is suitably sized for the size of their party.

Robert Jenrick: The Government is working with 350 local authorities across the UK to meet the demand for housing and will continue to do so. Over 9,000 people have been supported into settled accommodation (This breaks down as c.8,500 moved into homes with an additional c.500 matched but not yet moved). Further statistics on individuals resettled or relocated under the Afghan schemes have now also become available in the Immigration System Statistics, year ending December 2022 release. Consideration of family size is an important factor when assisting guests with their housing needs. All guests are encouraged to work with our Home Office Liaison Officers (HOLOs) and council support staff at their hotel when searching for a property, who will support them to identify suitable, affordable homes. We have always been clear with guests that there is no guarantee that any hotel moves or settled accommodation allocation will be in the same area as where they are now.

Asylum

Rachael Maskell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many staff in her Department were working on asylum claims in each of the last 12 months.

Robert Jenrick: The number of full time equivalent (FTE) asylum caseworkers employed per month until December 2022 is in the ASY_05(M) tab of the published immigration statistics, located here: Immigration and protection data: Q4 2022 - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)Caseworking staff as referred to in the published immigration data, are defined as those responsible for delivering the interview and decision stages of asylum claims within asylum operations.The Home Office is unable to provide the number of (FTE) caseworkers working on asylum decisions from January to March 2023 as this information has yet to be published.

Passports: Industrial Action

Mr Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what contingency plans her Department has in place to ensure the continued operation of passport services in the event of industrial action.

Robert Jenrick: We are disappointed with the union’s decision to strike.We are working to manage the impact of strike action, whilst ensuring we can continue to deliver vital services to the public, with comprehensive contingency plans in place.There are currently no plans to change our guidance which states that it takes up to ten weeks to get a passport.

Asylum: Rwanda

Chris Law: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether funding for the development, processing and integration costs for the UK-Rwanda Migration and Economic Development Partnership will be classified as Overseas Development Assistance.

Robert Jenrick: The funding for the Migration and Economic Development Partnership with Rwanda is separate from, and additional to, the Official Development Assistance (ODA) budget.

Asylum: Rwanda

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether her Department has received legal advice on the categorisation as Official Development Assistance of funding for processing and integration costs under the UK-Rwanda Migration and Economic Development Partnership; and how her Department plans to report those costs.

Robert Jenrick: The funding for the Migration and Economic Development Partnership with Rwanda is separate from, and additional to, the Official Development Assistance (ODA) budget.Actual departmental spend will be reported as part of the annual Home Office Reports and Accounts in the usual way.

Asylum

Tim Farron: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what would happen to a person whose protection or human rights claim is deemed inadmissible under clause 4(2) of the Illegal Migration Bill but who cannot be removed from the UK.

Robert Jenrick: Those who come to the UK illegally who cannot be returned home, will be relocated to a safe third country such as Rwanda, where they will be provided with the support to rebuild their lives.If a person is considered unfit to travel, they will be exempt from removal until they are safely able to do so.

Offshore Industry: Employment

Karl Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, If she will make an assessment of the impact of the Immigration (Offshore Worker Notification and Exemption from Control (Amendment)) Regulations 2023 on employment for UK resident (a) offshore workers and (b) seafarers working on (i) fixed and (ii) floating offshore wind turbines in (A) territorial sea and (B) the UK Exclusive Economic Zone to 2030.

Karl Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she has made of the impact of the Immigration (Offshore Worker Notification and Exemption from Control (Amendment)) Regulations 2023 on employers in the offshore wind industry that have used the Offshore Wind Workers Immigration Rules Concession 2017.

Karl Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will make an estimate of how many officials in her department will be needed to administer the Immigration (Offshore Worker Notification and Exemption from Control (Amendment)) Regulations 2023.

Robert Jenrick: The Immigration (Offshore Worker Notification and Exemption from Control (Amendment)) Regulations 2023 will be administered by the Home Office as part of its business as usual activities.The introduction of the Immigration (Offshore Worker Notification and Exemption from Control (Amendment)) Regulations 2023 was assessed prior to introduction as per all Government regulations. In line with standard practice, we will continue to review its implementation.

Visas: Skilled Workers

Alex Sobel: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she has made of the impact of IT issues in her Department on (a) processing times for Skilled Worker visa applications and (b) Skilled Worker visa applications where the applicant has paid for the priority service.

Robert Jenrick: In August 2022, some applications processed through the Atlas Caseworking system were impacted by a number of unrelated IT incidents which were spread across the end -to -end case-working digital platform. These issues were varied and due to some initial delays in being able to identify them, some customers directly informed us of delays in their applications.A programme of IT stabilisation was commissioned and good progress has been made to date in both understanding and tackling the root causes of these incidents and also proactively identifying issues when they happen, before they adversely affect customers.The total number of incidents being raised in early 2023 has fallen by more than half and IT Support continues to focus on resolving the underlying issues and creating better proactive reporting, removing the impact on customers and wider case-working service standards.

Bicycles: Theft

Tulip Siddiq: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps she is taking to tackle organised bike theft.

Chris Philp: The British Transport Police-led National Cycle Crime Group, working with Department for Transport, have set up Cycle Crime Reduction Partnerships across the country to coordinate regional enforcement activity to disrupt organised cycle theft.The Home Office works closely with the British Transport Police (BTP), the national lead for tackling cycle theft, who have launched the ‘double lock it’ campaign with police forces and organisations, providing advice to owners to help better protect their bicycles. Further information on the campaign and bicycle locks can be found here: https://www.btp.police.uk/police-forces/british-transport-police/areas/campaigns/double-lock-it/.The Department for Transport (DfT) published its Cycling and Walking Plan for England, Gear Change, in 2020, which is available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/cycling-and-walking-plan-for-england(opens in a new tab). The Plan aims to boost cycling and walking and sets out a number of initiatives to combat cycle theft which DfT is leading, including encouraging retailers to number the bicycles they sell and offering customers the opportunity to register their bicycle on a database at the point of sale.The Crime survey of England & Wales show that bicycle theft since March 2010 has reduced by 49%.

Fraud

Dr Dan Poulter: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether her Department plans to take steps to provide guidance for (a) web hosting companies, (b) telephone infrastructure companies, (c) the banking industry and (d) other industries potentially prone to fraud on protections against fraud for vulnerable and elderly people.

Tom Tugendhat: Tackling fraud requires a unified and co-ordinated response from government, law enforcement and the private sector and we will publish a new strategy to address the threat of fraud.In October 2021, we launched three Fraud Sector Charters, which are voluntary agreements with the telecommunications, retail banking and accountancy sectors. The charters have delivered innovative actions to counter fraud in these industries including measures to reduce scam texts, measures to help vulnerable victims of fraud and to share data.The Home Office is also intending to launch tech, insurance and legal sector charters with industry. This will include private and public actions that will drive down fraud in these sectors.

Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

Flood Control: Shrewsbury

Daniel Kawczynski: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if she will provide additional funding to help tackle flooding in Shrewsbury.

Rebecca Pow: Significant investment in flood risk mitigation is taking place in Shrewsbury and the wider Severn Valley. Flood defence schemes in the Shrewsbury and Atcham constituency and wider surrounding areas are already benefitting from around £20 million of funding for several schemes, including the Severn Valley Water Management Scheme upstream of Shrewsbury. Across the English Severn and Wye region, around £170 million will be invested in flood and coastal erosion risk management from 2021 to 2027.

Disposable Wipes

Munira Wilson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, when her Department plans to open its public consultation into banning the use of plastic in wet wipes; and what her provisional timetable is for bringing forward a ban of their use.

Rebecca Pow: The consultation on the proposed ban on wet wipes containing plastic will be launched in due course.

Flood Control: Local Government Finance

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether her Department plans to provide additional funding to local authorities for the installation of gullies for flooding and excessive rainfall.

Rebecca Pow: Flood risk management is a devolved matter, and in England surface water flood risk management is the responsibility of lead local flood authorities (LLFAs) to manage and mitigate. They do this in partnership with highways authorities who are responsible for highway and gully maintenance and water companies who have a duty to maintain their sewers to ensure that their area is effectually drained.  It is for LLFAs to determine the best approach to mitigating the risk. The government has taken steps to change partnership funding rules that apply in England to enable more surface water schemes in our new £5.2 billion flood defence programme. Around half of the schemes funded by the programme will be delivered by risk management authorities, such as LLFAs, who apply by using the Partnership Funding rules. The Local Government Finance Settlement for England in 2023/24 makes available up to £59.7 billion for local government in England, an increase in Core Spending Power of up to £5.1 billion or 9.4% in cash terms on 2022/23. The majority of this funding is un-ringfenced in recognition of local authorities being best placed to spend according to local priorities. The devolved administrations receive funding through the Barnett Formula when changes are made to UK Government departments’ Department Expenditure Limit (DEL). Changes to the local government DEL therefore have an impact on devolved administration funding through the Barnett Formula. Spending Review 2021 set the largest annual block grants of any spending review settlement since the Devolution Acts in 1998. Over the Spending Review 2021 period, the UK Government is providing the devolved administrations with over 20% more funding per person than equivalent UK Government spending in other parts of the UK.

River Medway: Sewage

Tracey Crouch: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps her Department is taking to work with Southern Water and the Environment Agency on addressing sewage discharges into the River Medway.

Rebecca Pow: In February 2023, the Secretary of State asked water and sewerage companies to set an action plan on every storm overflow in England. The Environment Agency is working closely with Southern Water to identify improvement schemes required to improve the water quality of the Medway. These schemes will reduce excess nutrients in rivers and the frequency of storm overflow discharges. This work is ongoing and part of the WINEP Price Review 2024.

Industrial Waste: Environment Protection

Brendan Clarke-Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether she has made an assessment of the environmental impact of pulverised fuel ash extraction.

Rebecca Pow: The Environment Agency regulates the excavation of previously landfilled wastes under waste controls (under an environmental permit). Site operators need to apply for a permit to cover the correct treatment, recovery or disposal of any excavated material. Excavating pulverised fuel ash may be a change of land use that may require planning controls. This would be for the local planning authority. An application to the local planning authority may require an environmental impact assessment.

Water Abstraction: Licensing

Esther McVey: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what recent discussions she has had with the Environment Agency on helping to ensure that the process for abstraction licences is adaptable and flexible.

Rebecca Pow: The Environment Agency has recently invested in significant additional resources to help improve the determination timescales associated with abstraction licence applications and to reduce the number of applications in the queue. Improvements are already being seen. The Environment Agency is also prioritising licence applications and Habitats Risk Assessments which are associated with Rural Payments Agency grants for farm storage reservoirs and has appointed a specialist to help support these applications through the process. The Environment Agency and Defra are working closely with the sector to help farmers refill storage reservoirs and recover from the 2022 drought, and to improve the sector’s resilience to future drought. This includes improvements to water resources planning, investment in infrastructure, greater collaboration across all sectors of use, and more rapid communications to improve access to water when it is available.

Dogs: Smuggling

Kenny MacAskill: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether her Department has made an assessment of the potential zoological impact of illegally imported dogs on the indigenous dog population.

Rebecca Pow: We regularly undertake risk assessments on zoonotic pathogens associated with the trade of commercial dogs or movement of pet dogs to inform our risk management. For example, we have been working on assessments of Echinococcus multilocularis, tick borne diseases, Brucella canis, Leishmaniasis and dog-mediated rabies. The data on illegal dogs are very difficult to gather, therefore our risk assessments assume non-compliance with the existing requirements for imports. Some of these assessments are focussed on the risk to public health and others on the risk to animal health. For pathogens which are not zoonotic and are not notifiable, as infection does not have a significant impact on the health of the dog, there is no reason for government intervention and therefore we have not undertaken specific assessments.

Water: Infrastructure

Mrs Pauline Latham: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, with reference to the Plan for Water, published in April 2023, how will her Department determine which physical modifications are redundant and should be removed.

Mrs Pauline Latham: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, with reference to the Plan for Water, published in April 2023, if she will take steps to ensure that existing weirs are not removed without (a) a full assessment of their potential use for hydroelectric power (b) a local consultation carried out by the Environment Agency.

Rebecca Pow: Through the development of the River Basin Management Plans, the Environment Agency evaluates in each water body where redundant physical modifications are damaging ecology and should be removed. Not all physical modifications are redundant and able to be removed, for example straightened rivers. More information is publicly available at: Physical modifications: challenges for the water environment - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)The Environment Agency evaluates key criteria when determining if a weir is removed including ownership, use(s), condition, maintenance costs, any associated risks and additional benefits that the physical modifications provide. These evaluations consider local site-specific factors too, such as biodiversity, flood mitigation, water supply and other ecosystem services.

Sewage: Waste Disposal

David Warburton: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment she has made of the impact of sewage spillages on river water quality.

Rebecca Pow: We have been consistently clear that the failure of water companies to adequately reduce sewage discharges is totally unacceptable. That is why in August 2022, we published the Storm Overflows Discharge Reduction Plan - the most ambitious plan to reduce sewage discharges from storm overflows in water company history. Environment Agency data shows that 7% of waterbodies in England failed to reach Good Ecological Status because of storm overflows in 2019, a significant contribution to the 36% affected by the wider water industry. This compares to agriculture affecting 40% of water bodies and urban and transport affecting 18%. We are committed to increasing transparency. We have increased the number of storm overflows monitored across the network from 7% in 2010 to 91% in 2022, and we will reach 100% cover by the end of the year. Earlier this month, we launched our consultation on Continuous Water Quality Monitoring and Event Duration Monitoring. This outlines the Government’s proposals to enhance the monitoring of storm overflow and final effluent discharges.

Flood Control: Finance

Priti Patel: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, which flood alleviation schemes her Department has provided funding to in (a) full and (b) part in the latest period for which data is available; what the total cost is of each scheme; and how much funding (a) her Department and (b) other sources have provided to each scheme.

Rebecca Pow: The Government announced in March 2020 that the amount invested in flood and coastal erosion schemes would be doubled in England to £5.2 billion. This current six-year programme of flood and coastal erosion risk management (FCERM) projects runs from 1 April 2021 to 31 March 2027. At the end of March 2023, the Environment Agency (EA) estimates approximately £1.5 billion of this funding has been invested, with around 60,000 properties better protected from flooding and coastal erosion by over 200 completed schemes. In the first year of this programme, between April 2021 and March 2022, the EA worked with other risk management authorities (RMAs) to complete around 120 FCERM projects. A list of capital schemes protecting properties, completed between April 2021 and March 2022 is available from Asset Information and Maintenance Programme (data.gov.uk). More details on investment in FCERM work can also be found in the EA’s recently published Flood and coastal erosion risk management report: for 2021/22. This annual report describes the extensive work undertaken by all RMAs to: manage the risks from flooding and coastal erosion; achieve the objectives of the National FCERM Strategy for England; and plan for future flood and coastal erosion risk.

Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office

British Nationals Abroad: State Retirement Pensions

Marion Fellows: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, on how many occasions (a) Ministers or (b) officials in his Department have held discussions with their counterparts in the Department for Work and Pensions on the position of overseas pensioners without reciprocal social security arrangements in the last five years.

David Rutley: FCDO Ministers and officials routinely engage with their counterparts in other Government Departments on matters of mutual interest and concern.

Pitcairn Islands: Internet

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether his Department is taking steps to help improve internet connectivity on Pitcairn Island.

David Rutley: The Governor's office is currently working with SpaceX on a trial of their Starlink satellite connection to Pitcairn, with the possibility of rolling out the service on a commercial basis. Additionally discussions are ongoing with the current internet provider on improving the service.

British Indian Ocean Territory: Asylum

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, how many people claimed asylum on the British Indian Ocean Territory in each of the last five years.

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, how many people successfully claimed asylum in the British Overseas Territories in each of the last five years.

David Rutley: As an uninhabited territory, the British Indian Ocean Territory (BIOT) does not have an asylum system. Where migrants have claimed that they are unable to return safely to their country of origin, their cases have been considered by the Commissioner for BIOT in line with BIOT law and international legal obligations. We do not comment publicly on individual claims for protection.

Cabinet Office

Customs: Small Businesses

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, if he will take steps with Cabinet colleagues to review the implementation of the Single Trade Window to ensure it meets the needs of small businesses; and if he will make a statement.

Alex Burghart: The Cabinet Office has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Cabinet Office: Staff

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the Answer of 28 March 2023 to Question 166164 on Government Departments: Staff, how many and what proportion of respondents to the most recent Leesman office survey undertaken by his Department (a) agreed and (b) disagreed with the statements about their main workplace that (i) it enables me to work productively, (ii) it supports me sharing ideas and knowledge amongst colleagues, (iii) it creates an enjoyable environment to work in, (iv) it contributes to a sense of community at work, and (v) it's a place I'm proud to bring visitors to.

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the Answer of 28 March 2023 to Question 166164 on Government Departments: Staff, how many and what proportion of respondents to the most recent Leesman office survey undertaken by his Department (a) agreed and (b) disagreed with the statements about their main workplace that (i) it enables me to work productively, (ii) it supports me sharing ideas and knowledge amongst colleagues, (iii) it creates an enjoyable environment to work in, (iv) it contributes to a sense of community at work, and (v) it's a place I'm proud to bring visitors to.

Alex Burghart: The most recent Leesman office survey was conducted in November 2022. The number of respondents that answered either agree or disagree to the questions listed is set out in the table below: QuestionNo. Respondent Agree (figures are aggregate by response of Strongly Agree, Agree or Slightly Agree)No. Respondent Disagree (figures are aggregate by response of Strongly Disagree, Disagree or Slightly Disagree)it enables me to work productively1250 (76.31%)258 (15.75%)it supports me sharing ideas and knowledge amongst colleagues1214 (74.57%)206 (12.65%)it creates an enjoyable environment to work in1239 (75.69%)202 (12.34%)it contributes to a sense of community at work1177 (71.99%)250 (15.29%)it's a place I'm proud to bring visitors to1101 (67.67%)192 (11.80%)

Government Departments: Staff

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the Answer of 28 March 2023 to Question 166164 on Government Departments: Staff, what the overall rating out of 100 recorded was in the most recent Leesman office surveys undertaken through the Government Property Agency by the (a) Cabinet Office, (b) Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, (c) Department for Education, (d) Department for International Trade, (e) Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, (f) Department for Work and Pensions, (g) Treasury, (h) Home Office, (i) Ministry of Defence, and (j) Ministry of Justice.

Alex Burghart: The results from the most recent Leesman surveys participated by those departments listed is set out in the table below: DepartmentDate of participation of most recent Leesman surveyLeesman Index Score (out of 100)Cabinet OfficeNovember 202268.7Department for Business, Energy and Industrial StrategyNovember 202274.9Department for International TradeNovember 202269.5Department for Levelling Up, Housing and CommunitiesNovember 202270.9HM TreasuryNovember 202273.1Ministry of JusticeNovember 202260.0Department for EducationSeptember 202249.4Ministry of DefenceSeptember 202265.5Department for Work and PensionsSeptember 202154.6Home OfficeJuly 202152.8

Home Office: Staff

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office,  pursuant to the Answer of 28 March 2023 to Question 166164 on Government Departments: Staff, what the overall rating out of 100 recorded was in the most recent Leesman office surveys undertaken by (a) the Asylum, Protection and Enforcement Directorate, (b) the Immigration Enforcement Directorate, (c) Border Force, (d) HM Passport Office and (e) UK Visas and Immigration.

Alex Burghart: The results from the most recent Leesman surveys participated by those departments listed is set out in the table below: DepartmentDate of participation of most recent Leesman surveyLeesman Index Score (out of 100)Asylum, Protection and Enforcement DirectorateJuly 202155.3Immigration Enforcement DirectorateJuly 202155.9Border ForceJuly 202144.7 UK Visas and Immigration July 2021 52.8HM Passport OfficeJanuary 202156.7 GPA has launched 10 office based surveys with Leesman, starting in January 2021. All the departments from the July 2021 survey were from 3 buildings the GPA were exiting as part of the Croydon hub. The buildings surveyed were: Apollo House, Lunar House, Metro Point. The January 2021 survey (HMPO) was a survey of one of the buildings GPA surveyed to exit for the Peterborough hub. The building that score relates to is Aragon Court, Peterborough. In both these surveys (Croydon and Peterborough) the surveys were pre-occupancy. GPA were surveying the old estate that the department was or is exiting. In these examples, low scores are helpful as they demonstrate the case for needing these new hubs which GPA is creating. GPA will survey the new hubs once people have moved in - Peterborough will be surveyed later in 2023.

Cabinet Office: Aviation

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the Answer of 28 March to Question 169228, on how many occasions the (a) Minister and (b) his predecessors have travelled overseas on non-scheduled flights with members of (i) the media and (ii) business delegations in the travelling party since 1 January 2021.

Jeremy Quin: The Cabinet Office has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Veterans: Housing

Jim Shannon: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what steps he is taking to encourage veterans to use housing support available through the Veterans’ Gateway.

Johnny Mercer: This Government is committed to ending veteran homelessness this year. That is why the Chancellor allocated an additional £20m for veterans’ housing in the Spring Budget, further to the £8.55m already announced in December to help us achieve our mission. The Veterans’ Gateway service is the Government funded first point of contact for veterans and their families, providing advice and guidance across a spectrum of welfare areas, such as housing, employment, and health, from a consortium of third sector organisations. Charities, service providers and Government routinely signpost veterans to the Gateway, and further information on the Op FORTITUDE homelessness referral pathway will be passed to the Gateway in due course, allowing veterans in need to be directed to this vital new service. We have also recently announced a major review into welfare provision for veterans, including the Veterans’ Gateway, which has been commissioned as a result of changes and advances in veteran care during the last decade. This will examine the effectiveness of welfare services, and its recommendations for improvements will be published following the review’s completion.

Overseas Trade: Commonwealth

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what proportion of UK trade is with Commonwealth countries; and what the trends in the level of that trade with those countries has been since 2020.

Jeremy Quin: The information requested falls under the remit of the UK Statistics Authority. A response to the Hon gentlemen Parliamentary Question of 29.03 is attached.UK Statistics Authority Response (pdf, 105.6KB)

Cabinet Office: Official Hospitality

Jon Trickett: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how much from the public purse his Office has spent on hospitality since 25 October 2022.

Jeremy Quin: I refer the hon. Member to the answer of 24 November 2022, Official Report, PQ 95960.

Civil Servants: Recruitment

Yasmin Qureshi: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what recent steps his Department has taken to ensure that civil service recruitment processes comply with provisions in the Equality Act 2010 on discrimination against people according to their (a) socio-economic status and (b) other protected characteristics.

Jeremy Quin: The Cabinet Office operates a policy requiring all employment opportunities to be made readily available to all.The current selection process is designed to be fair and objectively identify the best candidates.There are a number of safeguards built in to the process:Applications are anonymised until after the sift stage.All sifters are expected to act in accordance with the Civil Service Code.We would also expect an independent presence during any sift exercise. Each panel should include at least one member from outside of the line of business to provide an independent view.We are committed to providing services and developing policies which promote equality of opportunity and eliminate unlawful discrimination. We are an equal opportunities employer and will not unlawfully discriminate in any aspect of employment, including how employees are selected or how employees are treated.

Civil Service: Recruitment

Yasmin Qureshi: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what schemes the Government run to encourage people from lower socio-economic backgrounds into the civil service.

Jeremy Quin: We have a range of schemes to encourage people from lower all backgrounds to join the civil service including: Apprenticeships, a new strategy was launched in April 2022 and included a target for lower-socio economic backgrounds.Accelerated development schemes like the Fast Stream. (Representation from lower socio-economic backgrounds in the Fast Stream has increased annually since 2016.)Civil Service Commission’s Going Forward into Employment Scheme: Life Chances scheme, uses innovative approaches to recruit people from a wide range of backgrounds into the Civil Service with targeted recruitment of care leavers, prison leavers and veterans.Internships such as the Summer Diversity Internship Programme, the scope of which has been broadened to include lower-socio economic backgrounds.Mentoring and sponsorship such as the Ministry of Justice Graduate Aspiration programme.Outreach is carried out by many of our departments within Schools, Colleges and Universities to raise awareness of the broad range of Civil Service careers available.Work experience placements such as Movement to Work which supports employers to provide work placements that combine employability skills training with on-the-job experience.

Disability

Marion Fellows: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what new data on the life chances of disabled people his Department has commissioned since July 2021.

Jeremy Quin: The information requested falls under the remit of the UK Statistics Authority. A response to the Hon Lady’s Parliamentary Question of 30th March is attached. UK Statistics Authority Response (pdf, 106.5KB)

Department of Health and Social Care

Autism

Feryal Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent assessment he has made of the impact of of the time taken to obtain an autism diagnosis on (a) children with autism and (b) their parents.

Maria Caulfield: This specific assessment has not been made. The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) highlights the importance of conducting an autism assessment as soon as possible so that appropriate health and social care interventions, advice and support can be offered. The waiting time standard recommended by NICE is for a maximum waiting time of 13 weeks between a referral for an autism assessment and a first appointment. It is the responsibility of integrated care boards to make available appropriate provision to meet the health and care needs of their local population and meet the NICE Guidelines.NHS England has recently published a national framework to deliver improved outcomes in all-age autism assessment pathways and Operational Guidance to deliver improved outcomes in all-age autism assessment pathways. The guidance aims to support integrated care systems to make the best of their resources by setting out how pathways can best be delivered, and is supplementary to the NICE guidance. This will improve the experience of people, including children and their parents, who are awaiting an autism assessment.

Mental Health Services: Children and Young People

Rachael Maskell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to reduce waiting times for children and young people to receive mental health support.

Maria Caulfield: We are supporting the expansion and transformation of mental health services for children and young people through the NHS Long Term Plan. As part of the accompanying investment of at least an extra £2.3 billion a year by March 2024, an additional 345,000 children and young people will be able to get the mental health support they need. We also provided an additional £79 million for 2021/22 to allow around 22,500 more children and young people to access community mental health services and around 2,000 more to access eating disorder services. We continue to roll out mental health support teams in schools and colleges across the country, offering early support to children experiencing anxiety, depression, and other common mental health issues. As of spring 2022, there were 287 in place in over 4,700 schools and colleges in England with over 500 planned to be up and running by 2024.NHS England has consulted on the potential to introduce five new waiting time standards as part of its clinically-led review of National Health Service access standards, including that children, young people and their families presenting to community-based mental health services should start to receive care within four weeks from referral. As a first step, NHS England has shared and promoted guidance with its local system partners to consistently report waiting times to support the development of a baseline position.

Eating Disorders: Health Services

Julian Sturdy: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to support people with eating disorders.

Maria Caulfield: Under the NHS Long Term Plan, the Government has earmarked additional funding to bolster existing mental health services, including eating disorder services, until 2024. Since 2016, investment in children and young people's community eating disorder services has risen every year, with an extra £54 million per year from 2023/24. This extra funding continues to enhance the capacity of community eating disorder teams across the country. We expect integrated care boards to continue to meet the Mental Health Investment Standard so that investment in mental health services increases in line with their overall increase in allocation for that year.NHS England continues to work with system leaders and regions and to ask that areas prioritise service delivery and investment to meet the needs of these vulnerable young people to help ensure funding flows to these services as intended. To support this, NHS England is refreshing guidance on children and young people's eating disorders, including to increase the focus on early identification and intervention. Updated guidance will highlight the importance of improved integration between dedicated community eating disorder services, wider children and young people's mental health services, schools, colleges and primary care to improve awareness, provide expert advice and improve support for children and young people presenting with problems with eating, whilst ensuring swift access to specialist support as soon as an eating disorder is suspected.

Vaccination: Ethnic Groups

Rachael Maskell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking (a) to tackle vaccine hesitancy in minority communities and (b) with local healthcare partners to help increase uptake of vaccines in minority communities.

Maria Caulfield: To assess confidence of the public in vaccinations programmes, the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) undertakes research to understand how knowledge, beliefs and attitudes towards immunisation, vaccine safety and disease severity influence vaccine uptake decision-making. This includes working with partners in the NIHR Health Protection Research Unit for Vaccines exploring issues within specific minority communities.Vaccine hesitancy is only part of the issue; ensuring good access to health care, particularly for inclusion health groups who face multiple barriers to care, is also critical. This includes efforts to improve access to mainstream services and specialist outreach services.Some members of under-served communities can find accessing healthcare and vaccination services more challenging. UKHSA, in partnership with NHS England and the Department, undertakes a range of actions to improve vaccination coverage for all ages in England. This includes initiatives to improve access to the immunisation programme, data to better identify under-served individuals and populations, training for healthcare professionals and communication with the public. To support this, a range of leaflets and other promotional materials are available, in several languages, in print form and for download from our Health Publications website.

Coronavirus: Vaccination

Lloyd Russell-Moyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he plans to take steps to expand the eligibility criteria for Seasonal Covid-19 Boosters to include those who suffer with long term effects of Covid-19.

Maria Caulfield: Eligibility for COVID-19 vaccination is based on the advice of the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI). JCVI advice, including advice on eligibility for future planned programmes, is set out in published JCVI statements and reflected in national guidance. The guiding principle behind JCVI advice to date is the prevention of severe disease and mortality.JCVI have indicated in interim advice that there should be a vaccination programme in autumn 2023. The final advice, including evidence in determining eligibility for an autumn 2023 COVID-19 booster vaccination, is currently being reviewed by the JCVI and will be published in due course. No advice has been published on COVID-19 programmes beyond autumn 2023.At this time, based on JCVI advice, the green book does not indicate that ‘those who suffer with long term effects of COVID-19’ are a clinical risk group. JCVI will keep its advice under review, and advice will be based on evidence regarding the risk from COVID-19 and the potential benefits of vaccination.

Antimicrobials: Drug Resistance

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department will take to promote the importance of WASH in healthcare facilities as a critical element of tackling antimicrobial resistance international at the G7.

Maria Caulfield: Clean water, sanitation, and hygiene services (WASH) are critical for preventing the spread of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) in healthcare facilities and for achieving Universal Health Coverage.Under the 2021 G7 United Kingdom presidency, we secured ambitious commitments on AMR. We have continued to maintain momentum by advocating for improved WASH services and robust action on AMR in both the 2022 and this year’s communiqué negotiations.The Department of Health and Social Care also supports Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office international leadership through the UK’s membership of the WASH In Healthcare Facilities international taskforce, bilateral programming such as our innovative hand hygiene partnership with Unilever, and core multilateral funding including the World Bank and the World Health Organization.

Coronavirus: Vaccination

Rachael Maskell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will conduct a review into whether vaccine misinformation has contributed to trends in levels of non-covid 19 vaccine uptake over the last 10 years.

Maria Caulfield: The Government is committed to tackling vaccine misinformation. This includes ongoing monitoring of vaccine uptake and attitudes towards vaccines by the UK Health Security Agency. In addition, the Department works alongside the National Health Service, other Government departments and social media companies to tackle anti-vaccine messaging and limit misinformation. This includes supporting strategic communication teams to identify and rebut false information, as well as ensuring reputable sources such as NHS.UK or GOV.UK are prominent and readily available.

Coronavirus: Surveys

Sarah Olney: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the potential implications for his Department's policies of the decision of the Office for National Statistics to end updates to its Coronavirus (COVID-19) latest insights publications as of 24 March 2023.

Maria Caulfield: The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) will continue to publish regular reports on COVID-19 which will contribute to our situational awareness. These include weekly surveillance reports, which provide data on infection rates and hospitalisation numbers. UKHSA also maintains the ability to track the latest variants through its genomics capabilities, which assess the risks posed by different strains of the virus.The approach to COVID-19 surveillance is being actively reviewed to ensure it is proportionate, cost effective and considered alongside how we monitor a range of other infectious diseases that present a similar threat.

Autism: Women

Tom Hunt: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to increase the accuracy of autism diagnoses of females.

Maria Caulfield: The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence guidelines on autism set out that clinicians should pay attention to the under-diagnosis of females when assessing for suspected autism, and we expect integrated care boards to have due regard to these guidelines when commissioning services.To support integrated care systems to make the best use of their resources and set out how autism assessment pathways can best be delivered, NHS England published a national framework and operational guidance for autism assessment services, on 5 April 2023. These documents are intended to help the National Health Service and local authorities improve autism assessment services and improve the experience for adults and children who are going through an autism assessment. They also set out what support should be available before an assessment and what support should follow a recent diagnosis of autism.We will continue to work with colleagues across NHS England, professional bodies, and people with lived experience so that those historically under-identified groups, including, but not limited to females, are better identified for access to good quality autism assessments where the multidisciplinary team have the competency to recognise and adjust for a wide range of needs.

Cosmetics: Ethnic Groups

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he has had recent discussions with the Secretary of State for Business and Trade on the impact of hair relaxers that are labelled as including no-lye when sodium hydroxide is listed in the ingredients on women's health; and if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of banning hair relaxers containing lye.

Maria Caulfield: Ministers regularly engage with other Cabinet colleagues on a range of issues relating to health and social care and other matters. There are currently no plans to make an assessment.

Mental Health Services: Staff

Rachael Maskell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent assessment he has made of the adequacy of staffing levels in crisis teams in mental health trusts; and what steps he is taking to ensure that they are staffed to meet the needs of the population.

Maria Caulfield: No assessment has been made. Through the NHS Long Term Plan we are investing at least £2.3 billion of additional funding a year by 2023/24 to expand and transform mental health services in England, and this includes crisis care. To support this expansion we aim to grow the mental health workforce by an additional 27,000 staff by 2023/24. We are making progress, the mental health workforce increased by over 8,900 full-time equivalent staff in December 2022 compared to December 2021.

Mental Health Services: Children

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 8 March to Question 158909 on Mental Health Services: Children, what proportion of responses received included reference to mental health support for babies and toddlers.

Maria Caulfield: The information is not held in the format requested and could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.

IVF: LGBT People

Dan Carden: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to ensure equal access to IVF for LGBT+ couples.

Maria Caulfield: Funding decisions for health services in England, including in vitro fertilisation (IVF), are made by integrated care boards and are based on the clinical needs of their local population. We published the first Women’s Health Strategy on 20 July 2022, which contained a number of important changes and future ambitions to improve the variations in access to National Health Service funded fertility services. This includes improving access to IVF for female same-sex couples by removing the additional financial burden they face when accessing treatment. We expect this to take effect during 2023.

Members: Correspondence

Cat Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, when he plans to respond to the letters of 1 February and 8 March 2023 from the hon. Member for Lancaster and Fleetwood on the draft Mental Health Bill, with reference ZA49048.

Maria Caulfield: We will provide a response shortly.

Menopause: Health Services

Anneliese Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, wat assessment he has made of the potential merits of including appropriate treatment for symptoms of the menopause in the Quality and Outcomes Framework.

Maria Caulfield: The Department has considered this, and currently has no plans to introduce menopause treatment into the Quality and Outcomes Framework. The menopause is a priority area within the Government’s ‘Women’s Health Strategy’, which was published last summer. This sets out the Government’s aim for women to have access to high-quality, personalised menopause care within primary care and, if needed, specialist care in a timely manner. Changes outlined in the strategy are being implemented via the NHS England National Menopause Care Improvement Programme.

Mental Health Services

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he has made a recent assessment of the potential merits of prescribing mindfulness on the NHS for mental health issues.

Maria Caulfield: No specific assessment has been made. Mindfulness-based therapies are recommended by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence as a way to treat less severe depression. The £200 million funding announced for digital mental health by my Rt hon. Friend, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, at the Spring Budget will, in part, be used to modernise and digitise mental health services in England, including by providing wellness and clinical-grade apps, many of which include elements of mindfulness. Information about mindfulness is included in other resources available to support mental health and wellbeing, such as Every Mind Matters, which is available at the following link:https://www.nhs.uk/every-mind-matters/Further information is available from the NHS website at the following link:https://www.nhs.uk/mental-health/self-help/tips-and-support/mindfulness/

Breast Cancer: Clinical Trials

Holly Lynch: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he plans to take steps to ensure as far as possible that access to clinical trials for treatment of metastatic breast cancer is open to patients (a) from all areas of the UK (b) regardless of line of therapy restrictions and (c) who have pre-existing conditions.

Will Quince: The Government published ‘Saving and Improving Lives: The Future of UK Clinical Research Delivery’ in March 2021. The phase two implementation plan for the vision, published in June 2021, aims to make it easier for all patients, including cancer patients, to access relevant research.The National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) infrastructure supports clinical research, including metastatic breast cancer. The NIHR Clinical Research Network includes 15 Local Clinical Research Networks, accessible across all geographies in England, including underserved regions and communities. The NIHR also provides the online platform 'Be Part of Research' allowing users to search and register interest in research studies relevant to them across the United Kingdom.

Orthopaedics: Out of Area Treatment

Mr Virendra Sharma: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department is taking steps to help support people who are required to travel outside of their local area for orthopaedic surgery.

Will Quince: Patients across England can receive help travelling to National Health Service facilities within and beyond their local area, including for orthopaedic surgery. The NHS Non-Emergency Patient Transport Service provides between 11 to 12 million journeys each year in England for people whose medical needs require such support. The NHS also has an existing Healthcare Travel Costs Scheme, which can support travel costs for individuals on a low income who are referred for NHS treatment. The NHS is currently developing proposals to simplify and streamline access to the scheme, alongside wider measures to improve patient transport.

Dental Services

Tom Hunt: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to increase the availability of dental appointments in (a) Ipswich constituency and (b) England.

Neil O'Brien: In September 2022, we announced ‘Our plan for patients’, which outlines how we will meet oral health needs and increase access to dental care across England, including in Ipswich. These will increase access to National Health Service dentistry whilst making the NHS dental contract more attractive to dental practices.The changes we have implemented include a contractual requirement for NHS dentists to keep their NHS.UK profiles up to date to make it easier for patients to seek treatment, adherence to risk-based recall intervals, and enabling dentists to make better use of their team resources. The contractual changes of 28 December 2022 also provide for the commissioning of 110% of contracted Units of Dental Activity so that practices can deliver more NHS care, particularly in those areas where NHS dentistry is less prevalent.In circumstances where parents are unable to access an urgent dental appointment for their child directly through a NHS dental practice, they are advised to contact NHS 111 for assistance.We are holding further discussions with the British Dental Association and other stakeholders for additional reforms of the NHS Dental System coming shortly this year.

Catering: Allergies

Catherine West: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of introducing allergen labelling for menus in restaurants and cafes in England.

Neil O'Brien: All food businesses are under a legal obligation to provide information on the presence of the 14 major allergens in food, including in the non-prepacked sector, such as in restaurants and cafes, so that allergic consumers are able to make safe food choices. Current requirements state that for non-prepacked food items, allergen information must be clearly signposted and can be provided in writing or orally.The Food Standards Agency (FSA), which has policy responsibility for food safety, is currently considering how to improve the provision of information for people with allergies, and is researching different approaches for the provision of written and oral information in the non-prepacked food sector. Any changes must be carefully considered to assess the impacts for both consumer safety and food businesses.The FSA has been working on food hypersensitivity for many years and its current work programme is focused on policy, research and evidence, supporting enforcement and engaging with consumers and businesses.

Menopause: Training

Anneliese Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent discussions he has had with (a) medical schools and (b) the medical Royal Colleges on the length and adequacy of training on menopausal and perimenopausal symptoms and their management.

Maria Caulfield: Details of Ministerial meetings are published quarterly on GOV.UK.It is the Government’s ambition, as set out in the Women’s Health Strategy, that healthcare professionals in primary care are well-informed about the menopause and able to offer women evidence-based advice and treatment options.The General Medical Council will be introducing the Medical Licensing Assessment for the majority of incoming doctors, including all medical students graduating in academic year 2024 to 2025 and onwards. The content for this assessment will include key topics relating to women’s health, including the menopause. This will encourage a better understanding of women’s health among doctors as they start their careers in the United Kingdom.The Royal College of General Practitioners (RCGP) has a holistic curriculum of training that all general practitioners (GPs) must cover before they are able to pass the examination to become a member of the RCGP and work independently as a GP. There is a specific section on women’s health, including the menopause. As a result, the menopause is already a core competency of all qualified GPs. The RCGP has also developed a women’s health toolkit to support GPs, which includes resources on the menopause.Employers in the health system are responsible for ensuring that their staff are trained to the required standards to deliver appropriate treatment for patients.

Lipoedema

Martyn Day: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will commission research on liposuction treatment for patients with chronic lipoedema.

Will Quince: The Department invests £1 billion per year in health research through the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR).The NIHR welcomes funding applications for research into any aspect of human health, including chronic lipoedema. As with other Government funders of health research, the NIHR does not allocate funding for specific disease areas. The level of research spend in a particular area is driven by factors including scientific potential and the number and scale of successful funding applications.

Autism: Occupational Therapy

Catherine West: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the availability of occupational therapy for children with autism in England.

Maria Caulfield: This specific assessment has not been made. However, we recognise the importance of autistic children having access to occupational therapy in line with their assessed needs.On 2 March 2023, the Department for Education published the Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) and Alternative Provision (AP) Improvement Plan in response to the Green Paper published in March last year. The SEND and AP Improvement Plan sets out our proposal to commission analysis to ensure that the health needs of children and young people with SEND, including autistic children, are supported through effective workforce planning. We proposed work with Health Education England, NHS England and the Department for Education to build on existing evidence and build a clearer picture of demand for support for children and young people with SEND from the therapy and diagnostic workforce.The NHS England Long Term Workforce Plan is imminent and will include 15-year intentions around workforce supply and demand.

Down's Syndrome: Training

Stephen Morgan: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that training on Down's syndrome for (a) education and (b) healthcare professionals is Down's syndrome-specific.

Maria Caulfield: From September 2020, all new teachers will benefit from at least three years of evidence-based professional development and support, starting with Initial Teacher Training (ITT) based on the new ITT Core Content Framework (CCF), and followed by a new two-year induction underpinned by the Early Career Framework (ECF).The Government does not prescribe the curriculum of ITT courses, it is for individual providers to design courses that incorporate the CCF and are appropriate to the needs of trainees so that they can support all pupils, including those with Down syndrome. To be awarded Qualified Teacher Status, trainees must demonstrate that they meet all the Teachers’ Standards at the appropriate level. The Department for Education will be conducting a review this year of the CCF and ECF to identify how the frameworks can equip new teachers to be more confident in meeting the needs of pupils with special educational needs and disabilities, including those with Down syndrome.For registered healthcare professionals, standards for training are set by the healthcare independent statutory regulatory bodies. Training programmes must meet these standards. The regulatory bodies also approve higher education institutions to develop and teach the curricula content which is designed to enable students to meet the desired standards.Whilst not all curricula may necessarily highlight a specific condition, they all emphasise the skills and approaches a healthcare professional must develop in order to ensure accurate and timely diagnoses and treatment plans for their patients, including people with Down syndrome.

Antimicrobials: Drug Resistance

Tom Randall: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent assessment he has made of the level of risk to human health of antimicrobial-resistant superbugs originating from industrial farms.

Maria Caulfield: Resistant bacteria and/or resistance genes can transfer between people and animals in both directions. The Veterinary Medicines Directorate conducts two surveillance schemes for antimicrobial resistance (AMR) in animals, including regular monitoring of AMR in major food-producing species such as pigs and poultry. The results of these surveillance schemes are published annually in the ‘UK Veterinary Antibiotic Resistance and Sales and Surveillance Report’ which can be found at the following link:https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/1126450/FOR_PUBLICATION_-_UK-VARSS_2021_Main_Report__Final_v3_-accessible.pdfSince 2014, the United Kingdom has reduced sales of veterinary antibiotics by 55%, and over this same period the UK has seen an overall trend of decreasing AMR in bacteria from animals. The UK has a cross-Government contingency plan to mitigate the risk to public health of resistant bacteria found in animals, a copy of which can be found at the following link:https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/resistant-bacteria-from-animals-of-possible-risk-contingency-plan/response-to-the-identification-from-an-animal-of-a-resistant-bacterial-isolate-of-risk-to-human-or-animal-health-contingency-plan

Non-surgical Cosmetic Procedures: Licensing

Kim Leadbeater: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to Section 180 of the Health & Care Act 2022, when he plans to introduce a licensing regime for aesthetic and cosmetic procedures.

Maria Caulfield: The Government is committed to improving the safety of cosmetic procedures by ensuring that the regulatory framework allows consumers to make informed and safe choices. As part of this work, officials have been considering how a future licensing scheme for non-surgical cosmetic procedures in England might be implemented.Any future licensing requirements would be subject to both stakeholder engagement and public consultation and we plan to publish a first consultation on the scope of the treatments to be included within the scheme later this year. No timetable has yet been set for implementation.

Department for Science, Innovation and Technology

Department for Science, Innovation and Technology: Disability

Vicky Foxcroft: To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what proportion of people employed within her Department have recorded that they have a disability.

George Freeman: DSIT employees remain employed by their previous departments until the new department is established by a Transfer of Functions order. Data for BEIS and DCMS employees can be found below.For BEIS, the proportion of people employed by the Department who have recorded that they have a disability was 11% as of 28 February 2023.As of 28th February, 9.1% of the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport declared a disability.

Shared Rural Network: North West Norfolk

James Wild: To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, which postcode areas in North West Norfolk constituency will benefit from improved mobile coverage under the Shared Rural Network; and when those improvements will go live.

Julia Lopez: Improvements from the Shared Rural Network (SRN) in North Norfolk will come from the industry-led element of the programme which is on track to complete by June 2024. This will see the four Mobile Network Operators (MNOs) tackle partial not-spots, or areas where there may be 4G coverage from one but not all four operators.The exact site deployment plans will be managed by the MNOs themselves in order for them to best deliver the agreed coverage outcomes. Therefore we are unable to provide any specific details on the precise location or number of new or upgraded masts that may be delivered in North Norfolk as a result of the SRN. I would encourage you to get in contact with the operators directly to ascertain their plans for your constituency.

Internet: Competition

Mark Pritchard: To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, if she will discuss with (a) Ofcom and (b) the Competition Commission potential measures to increase competition and diversity of supply in the provision of commercial and retail cloud data and storage services.

Julia Lopez: Fair competition and diversity of supply in the cloud sector is important for our country's economic growth. On 5 April, Ofcom proposed to refer the market to the Competition & Markets Authority (CMA) (previously the Competition Commission) for further investigation into competition issues it has identified as part of its market study into cloud services. Ofcom is consulting on that referral.If the CMA takes forward a market investigation, the CMA could choose to intervene in the market using its existing competition powers or through the new powers it will be granted via the upcoming Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Bill. The CMA is an operationally independent regulator and any intervention it makes in this market would be at its own discretion.The Government regularly engages with its regulators and will continue to do so to ensure that the cloud services market remains competitive.

Life Sciences: Manufacturing Industries

Alicia Kearns: To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, if she will publish a breakdown of the investments allocated to each of the four recipient companies of the Government’s Life Sciences Innovation Manufacturing Fundgrants by proportion of public and private sector for each investment.

George Freeman: The first four grant recipients of the Life Sciences Innovative Manufacturing Fund were announced on 28th March 2023, which saw £277 million in joint government and industry backing to help Life Sciences companies grow and innovate. Government grants have been supported by private investment from the successful companies. The proportion of the funding for each of the investments is as follows:Ipsen: 4% public, 96% private;Pharmaron Biologics UK: 7% public, 93% private;Randox Laboratories Ltd: 4% public, 96% private;Touchlight Genetics Ltd: 18% public, 82% private.

Antimicrobials: Drug Resistance

Maggie Throup: To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, whether her Department has made an assessment of the potential impact of reductions in Official Development Assistance budget on UK antimicrobial resistance research projects carried out (a) by the One Health Poultry Hub and (b) overseas.

George Freeman: The Government has committed £1.5bn in additional resources to support people fleeing oppression in Ukraine and Afghanistan. Recognising these significant and unanticipated costs, the UK remains committed to the use of ODA to fund research that can provide new solutions to critical challenges in development, and. We have robust mechanisms in place to assess the impact and value-for-money of our ODA-funded research programmes, which along with the priorities established by UK International Development Strategy, such as global health, are used to inform spending decisions on projects such as those linked to Antimicrobial Resistance.

Antimicrobials: Drug Resistance

Maggie Throup: To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, whether she has made an assessment of the potential impact of withdrawing £1.6 billion for research for antimicrobial resistance on the UK’s ability to lead the world in that area.

George Freeman: The £1.6bn returned to HM Treasury, was part of funding put aside in the Spending Review for association to Horizon Europe. As we have been unable to associate in the financial year 2022/23, the departmental underspend was returned to the Exchequer. Any funding required for association in future years will be made available once there is clarity on UK association to EU programmes. Regardless of whether we reach an agreement with the EU on association, or launch our proposed alternative, the Government will ensure that UK researchers and businesses continue to benefit from world-leading collaboration opportunities in Europe and beyond.

Antimicrobials: Drug Resistance

Maggie Throup: To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what proportion of the Advanced Research and Invention Agency’s £800 million budget will be allocated to research into (a) antimicrobial resistance as a whole, (b) rapid diagnostics for antimicrobial resistance, and (c) vaccine technologies to mitigate antimicrobial resistance.

George Freeman: As set out in ARIA’s Framework Agreement, ARIA will have maximum autonomy over its research and project choice; its procedures; and its institutional culture. Decisions on the programme portfolio will be set by ARIA, not ministers, and allocation of funding to research projects will be decided by those with relevant technical expertise. Over the coming months, ARIA is recruiting its first cohort of Programme Directors, who will help to shape and inform the Agency’s first set of research programmes.

Ministry of Defence

Finland: NATO

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what steps his Department has taken to improve the UK's military partnership with Finland in the period since Finland joined NATO.

James Heappey: Finland formally joined NATO on 4 April 2023 and the UK welcomes their accession to the Alliance. Since Finland has joined NATO, the UK has continued to enjoy a close defence relationship with Finland, bilaterally and through the Joint Expeditionary Force (JEF), and our Armed Forces have a long history of training and exercising together which will remain the case as they continue their integration into NATO. The UK has supported Finland’s NATO application since its inception and the UK-Finland statement on enhanced defence and security co-operation, signed by the Prime Minister and Finnish President on 11 May 2022, demonstrates our steadfast and unequivocal commitment to the security of Finland during this process and beyond.

Unmanned Air Vehicles: Surveillance

Mr Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether he plans to provide funding for manned surveillance operations by 5 Regiment Army Air Corps after the 2023-24 financial year.

James Heappey: The Department focuses on capability requirements when making platform replacement decisions. Any future requirement to provide 5 Regiment Army Air Corps with a crewed surveillance aviation platform beyond financial year 2023-24 will be framed by the 2021 Defence Rotary Wing Strategy and evolving operational demands.

Veterans: Cost of Living

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what steps he is taking to help veterans with the cost of living crisis.

Dr Andrew Murrison: The Ministry of Defence (MOD) paid the £150 Disability Cost of Living payment to eligible Veterans whose only government-paid income is from a War Disablement Pension. Through its Veterans Welfare Service, the MOD provides bespoke advice and assistance to Veterans and their families through a holistic assessment of need tailored to an individual's specific circumstances. Where financial assistance is required by Veterans the Veterans Welfare Service can assist with benefits checks, completion of application forms and signposting to entitlements and support available from the wider public and voluntary sectors. Veterans can call the Veterans Helpline free of charge on 0808 1914218 and ask for a call back from the welfare service. The Government are committed to supporting all households, including veterans, with the cost of living through initiatives such as the energy price guarantee and cost of living payments.

Reserve Forces: Reviews

Luke Pollard: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, with reference to the Reserve Forces Review 2030, published in 2021, for what reason his Department has not responded to that review to date; and when his Department plans to respond to that review.

Dr Andrew Murrison: Work is underway across Defence to transform the systems, policies, and processes by which we draw on and leverage the critical contributions made by our reserve forces, informed by the headmark and vision set out in the Reserves Forces 2030 Review. The Government will provide an update on this work in due course.

Veterans: Personal Records

Dr Liam Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many veterans can be personally identified from his Department's records.

Dr Liam Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many veterans can be identified via the verification processes of the Royal British Legion and other service charities.

Dr Andrew Murrison: The Ministry of Defence (MOD) has access to the records of all service personnel who have served in the UK armed forces. From 1972 onwards the information is held electronically by the MOD, either in the DPRR (data preservation repository reporting) or in the Joint Personnel Administration System. This equates to approximately 2.1 million records. Prior to 1972 the MOD holds an index of all service personnel IDs (name and service number) to facilitate the recall of service records from the National Archive (all records from WW2 onwards), approximately 4.9m records. Currently, Service charities approach the single Services or Defence Business Services for verification of an individual veteran’s service. However, more than £1 million in new money is being invested into a new digital verification service for veterans, which will enable them to verify their veteran status online quickly and easily.

Ukraine: Military Aid

John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the Answer of 9 March to Question 158790 on Ukraine: Military Aid, whether any contracts for successful round 1 bids for funding from the International Fund for Ukraine have been signed.

John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the Answer of 9 March to Question 158790 on Ukraine: Military Aid, when plans that the first capabilities provided by the International Fund to Ukraine will reach Ukrainian Forces.

James Heappey: The first round of procurement funded by the International Fund for Ukraine resulted in 1,567 individual proposals received from suppliers, across 11 capability areas. Following an assessment of these proposals, 10 were selected to be taken forward as part of the first IFU-funded capability package. To date, one contract has been let, with further contracts expected to be signed shortly. The first IFU capabilities will reach Ukrainian forces in the coming weeks. For operational security reasons, we are not able to confirm precise delivery timescales.

Armed Forces Compensation Scheme and War Pensions

Justin Madders: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the Answer of 6 March 2023 to Question 152253 on Armed Forces Compensation Scheme and War Pensions, what steps he is taking to reduce these clearance times.

Dr Andrew Murrison: Whilst the Ministry of Defence (MOD) aims to consider claims under the War Pension Scheme and Armed Forces Compensation Scheme as quickly as possible so as not to cause undue delay and stress, there are occasions when some cases do take longer to resolve. It is necessary to obtain Service evidence, medical records and case notes from the individual's General Practitioner and/or Hospital. Awaiting the return of those records does take time, and is something the MOD has no influence over. To manage workflow effectively and fairly, all cases are dealt with in strict date order, except where terminally ill veterans are given priority. Caseloads are monitored continuously so that resources can be targeted if issues emerge. Recently the numbers of Armed Forces Compensation Scheme claims have shown an increase on previous levels and additional resources are being recruited to tackle this. Around £40 million is being invested by the MOD in an ongoing Transformation Programme as part of the Service Delivery Contract to digitise existing paper-based processes, introduce automation, process improvements and create a single user portal for Pensions and Compensation. Additionally in November 2022, a new online digital claim service was launched on gov.uk for those seeking compensation from the Armed Forces Compensation and War Pension schemes. The service is now available to all Service personnel and veterans.

Sea King Helicopters: Exhaust Emissions

Luke Pollard: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many compensation payments have been made for health issues relating to Sea King helicopters since 1 January 2021; and what was the total value of these payments.

Dr Andrew Murrison: Since 1 January 2021, one common law compensation claim in relation to exposure to Sea King helicopter exhaust fumes has been settled. The amount of damages awarded is confidential between the parties.

Sea King Helicopters: Exhaust Emissions

Luke Pollard: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether he plans to take steps to provide blood testing for veterans who have developed cancer and had sustained exposure to Sea King helicopter exhaust fumes.

Dr Andrew Murrison: There is not a simple test or surveillance procedure of reliably mass screening for any exhaust associated rare cancers over an extended time period.

Sea King Helicopters: Exhaust Emissions

Luke Pollard: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of exposure to Sea King helicopter exhaust fumes on people's health, including the likelihood of developing cancer.

Dr Andrew Murrison: In 2022, the Institute of Naval Medicine Toxicologist was asked to investigate if there were any causal links between exposure to Sea King helicopter exhaust fumes and the likelihood of developing cancer. The types of cancer which are being considered are Leiomyosarcoma which is a rare cancer that develops in smooth muscle tissue and Multiple Myeloma which is a type of bone marrow cancer which often affects several areas of marrow throughout the skeleton. The element within exhaust fumes which is potentially a cause for concern is Benzene. The investigation concluded that there are no documented links between benzene exposure from Sea King exhaust fumes and leiomyosarcoma specifically or soft tissue sarcoma more widely. The literature on benzene exposure in general and multiple myeloma, suggest that a link whilst improbable, is possible. Studies of Sea King aircrew have not suggested significant exposure for benzene. I have asked for the opinion of the Independent Medical Advisory Group and once received I will provide the hon. Member with an update.

Military Bases: Insulation

John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what the insulation targets for the Defence Estate are.

Alex Chalk: The Strategy for Defence Infrastructure, published in Jan 2022, sets the ambition for a Net Zero built estate with a focus on reducing emissions through reducing demand, increasing efficiency, and moving away from fossil fuels. Initiatives to improve insulation are key to increasing the efficiency of the built estate, reducing running coasts, improving the thermal comfort of Defence people, helping to reduce energy bills for Service Families, and improving resilience against the impacts of Climate Change. Defence has invested over £500 million in Service Family Accommodation (SFA) over the past three financial years which includes a drive to improve the thermal efficiency of homes and to meet EPC C ratings by 2035 . This includes: over 1,000 homes with external wall insulation; 600 new boilers; 4,000 new roofs; and 2,600 homes with new doors and windows. Defence is also progressively increasing loft insulation across the Estate to a depth of 300mm versus the industry standard of 270mm. Additionally, Defence is delivering a £2 billion investment programme to improve Single Living Accommodation (SLA) over the next 10 years to ensure the Defence Minimum Standard is met, including for thermal comfort, and providing c40,000 new bedspaces that meet Net Zero building standards. Although there are currently no specific targets in place for insulation, it is recognised that good levels of insulation will be required across the whole of the built estate to meet our Net Zero ambition. A supporting Estate Sustainability Sub-Strategy is under development to plot the route to Net Zero (roadmap) which will include energy efficiency interventions. The roadmap will be informed by a decision support tool that will identify optimal interventions in terms of value for money and emission reduction e.g. insulation or LED lighting programmes.

RAF Barkston Heath

John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many (a) Service Family and (b) Single Living Accommodation units there are at RAF Barkston Heath; and how many personnel are based at that site.

John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many (a) Service Family and (b) Single Living Accommodation units there are at RAF Coningsby; and how many personnel are based at that site.

John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many (a) Service Family and (b) Single Living Accommodation units there are at RAF College Cranwell; and how many personnel are based at that site.

John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many (a) Service Family and (b) Single Living Accommodation units there are at RAF Croughton; and how many personnel are based at that site.

John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many (a) Service Family Accommodation and (b) Single Living Accommodation units there are at RAF Syerston; and how many personnel are based at that site as of 17 April 2023.

John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many (a) Service Family Accommodation and (b) Single Living Accommodation units there are at RAF Waddington; and how many personnel are based at that site.

Alex Chalk: I will write to the right hon. Member and place a copy of my letter in the Library of the House.

Treasury

Business: Energy

Jo Gideon: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will offer targeted support to businesses which agreed energy contracts in 2022 when wholesale energy prices were high and which are now having difficulty in meeting their operating costs.

James Cartlidge: The Energy Bills Discount Scheme (EBDS) will provide all eligible businesses and other non-domestic energy users with a discount on high energy bills for 12 months from 1 April 2023 until 31 March 2024. It will also provide businesses in sectors with particularly high levels of energy use and trade intensity with a higher level of support. EBDS will help those locked into contracts signed before recent substantial falls in the wholesale price manage their costs and provide others with reassurance against the risk of prices rising again. The Government is aware that some businesses are having difficulties securing the benefit of falling wholesale prices from their energy suppliers. The Government welcomes Ofgem’s recent update on their investigation into the non-domestic retail market. We encourage them to complete their review at pace and welcome their commitment to take swift compliance and enforcement action against any supplier who has breached market rules.

Duty Free Allowances

Henry Smith: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will commission a review by the Office for Budget Responsibility into the impact of tax free shopping at (a) airports and (b) ports on the economy.

James Cartlidge: In October 2022, to ensure the UK’s economic stability and to provide confidence in the Government’s commitment to fiscal discipline, the Chancellor announced that the Government will not be proceeding with plans to introduce a new VAT-free shopping scheme. Such a scheme would come at a significant fiscal cost as it would subsidise a large amount of tourist spending which already occurs without a tax relief in place. The independent Office for Budget Responsibility published their assessment of the withdrawal of the previous VAT-free shopping schemes in November 2020. This showed that withdrawal would raise a significant amount of revenue and have a limited behavioural effect on decisions to visit, or spend, in the UK. Although the Government keeps all taxes under review and continues to consider all available evidence as part of the policy-making process, there are no current plans to commission a further assessment.

Treasury: Staff

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to the Answer of 28 March 2023 to Question 166164 on Government Departments: Staff, how many and what proportion of respondents to the most recent Leesman office survey undertaken by his Department (a) agreed and (b) disagreed with the statements about their main workplace that (i) it enables me to work productively, (ii) it supports me sharing ideas and knowledge amongst colleagues, (iii) it creates an enjoyable environment to work in, (iv) it contributes to a sense of community at work, and (v) it's a place I'm proud to bring visitors to.

James Cartlidge: The Government Property Agency is committed to delivering great places to work and to ensure we are delivering on this commitment it is critical that civil servants have a voice that shapes their workplaces so that the spaces we deliver can best support them to be effective in delivering and serving the UK public. GPA has engaged with Leesman, a world leader in measuring workplace experience, using their independent, objective and transparent office surveys that allow us to benchmark ourselves globally. GPA is leading the way in analysing and gaining value from the Leesman data to ensure our workplace decisions and conversations are informed and led by insights and data. Leesman is a world leader in measuring workplace and employee experience via an online survey tool. The Leesman global average score for workplace experience is 64.6 (out of 100). HM Treasury participated in a GPA Leesman survey carried out on our Darlington Office (Feethams House) in November 2022. The survey had a total of 83 HM Treasury respondents. The proportional breakdown of responses against the requested questions from the survey can be found in the table below: (Please note that respondents can provide a neutral response to the question which will explain the difference in the overall response rate against each question listed)  QuestionNo. Respondent Agree (figures are aggregated by response of Strongly Agree, Agree or Slightly Agree) No. Respondent Disagree (figures are aggregated by response of Strongly Disagree, Disagree or Slightly Disagree)it enables me to work productively70 (84.33%)9 (10.84%)it supports me sharing ideas and knowledge amongst colleagues60 (72.2%)13 (15.66%)it creates an enjoyable environment to work in74 (89.15%)3 (3.61%)it contributes to a sense of community at work75 (90.36%)5 (6.02%)it's a place I'm proud to bring visitors to69 (83.13%)2 (2.41%)

Department for Education

Pre-school Education: Qualifications

Mr Barry Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what the course completion rate is for people taking full qualifications at (a) NVQ Level 2, (b) NVQ Level 3, (c) T-Level in education and early years, (d) early years apprenticeships, (e) early childhood degree with practitioner competencies and (f) early years Initial Teacher Training.

Robert Halfon: In the 2021/22 academic year, the adult (19+) education and training achievement rate for learning at National Vocational Qualification (NVQ) Level 2 was 83.4%, and the adult (19+) education and training achievement rate for learning at NVQ Level 3 was 75.7%.The apprenticeship achievement rate for the Early Years Educator apprenticeship was 53.3%, and the Early Years Practitioner was 42.7% in the 2021/22 academic year. Further information is available at: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/data-tables/permalink/4a09cee3-e95c-43e2-36e4-08db30eaf34e. The early years lead practitioner apprenticeship was introduced in August 2021 and typically takes 24 months to complete, which means achievement rate data is not currently available.The department’s provisional T Level results publication shows data on the outcomes achieved by T Level students in the 2021/22 academic year and is available at: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/provisional-t-level-results/2021-22. It shows that 450 students on the Education and Childcare T Level subject area received a ‘Pass’ or above, leading to a pass rate of 93.4% for those who took the assessment. Whilst the 2020 T Level Action Plan shows that approximately 650 initially started an Education and Childcare T Level in September 2020, some students moved to different courses after enrolment. This is a reflection of the novel nature of T Levels and of the impact of the pandemic on students’ learning at that time.T Levels are being rolled out in a phased approach to ensure high quality. The number of providers will increase year on year and the department expects student numbers to grow significantly over the next few years. In September 2022, over 2,000 students started a T Level in Education and Childcare. While the majority are expected to study the Early Years occupational specialism, students do not need to make their final decision until the end of their first year of learning.For early years initial teacher training, in the 2020/21 academic year, there were 527 final year postgraduate early years teacher trainees, of which 463 (88%) were awarded early years status. Further information is available at: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/initial-teacher-training-performance-profiles.The department continues to explore how to best support the early years sector to recruit and retain the staff it needs. We will work closely with the sector to develop plans to grow and support the workforce. The department will share further information in due course.

Department for Education: Staff

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, pursuant to the Answer of 28 March 2023 to Question 166164 on Government Departments: Staff, how many and what proportion of respondents to the most recent Leesman office survey undertaken by her Department (a) agreed and (b) disagreed with the statements about their main workplace that (i) it enables me to work productively, (ii) it supports me sharing ideas and knowledge amongst colleagues, (iii) it creates an enjoyable environment to work in, (iv) it contributes to a sense of community at work, and (v) it's a place I'm proud to bring visitors to.

Nick Gibb: The Government Property Agency (GPA) is committed to delivering great places to work. To support this, it is important that civil servants are able to provide feedback about their workplaces. GPA has engaged Leesman, a world leader in measuring workplace experience, using their independent, objective and transparent office surveys that enables global benchmarking.The table below shows the Leesman score achieved by Department for Education staff who took part in the survey in September 2022.This data was taken specifically from staff based in the London Sanctuary Buildings office and respondents represent a small percentage of the Department’s workforce.Department for Education (September 2022)AgreeDisagreeIt enables me to work productively126116It supports me sharing ideas/knowledge amongst colleagues11699It creates an enjoyable environment to work in112106It's a place I'm proud to bring visitors to7680It contributes to a sense of community at work116117

Schools: Bullying

Holly Mumby-Croft: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department are taking to reduce incidences of bullying in schools.

Claire Coutinho: The government has sent a clear message to schools that bullying, including cyberbullying, for whatever reason, is unacceptable. It can have a devastating effect on children, harm their education, and have serious and lasting consequences for their mental health.All schools are required by law to have a behaviour policy which outlines measures to encourage good behaviour and prevent all forms of bullying amongst pupils. The policy should set out the behaviour expected of pupils, the sanctions that will be imposed for misbehaviour, and recognition for good behaviour. This should be communicated to all pupils, school staff, and parents. The department issues guidance to schools on how to prevent and respond to bullying as part of their overall behaviour policy. This was last updated in July 2017 and is available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/preventing-and-tackling-bullying.The department is providing over £2 million of funding between 10 August 2021 and 31 March 2024 to five anti-bullying organisations to support schools to tackle bullying. This includes projects targeting bullying of particular groups, such as those who are victims of hate related bullying.The department is also ensuring that all children in England will learn about respectful relationships, in person and online, as part of mandatory relationships, sex and health education (RSHE). The curriculum has a strong focus on equality, respect, the harmful impact of stereotyping, as well as the importance of valuing difference. Guidance on teaching RSHE is available at: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/teaching-about-relationships-sex-and-health.

Down's Syndrome: Employment

Lee Anderson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to help improve the opportunities provided to people with Down's syndrome after they leave full-time education.

Claire Coutinho: The department wants to provide all young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND), including those with Down's syndrome, with good opportunities which allow them to transition from education into a fulfilling adult life.On 2 March, we published the SEND and Alternative Provision (AP) Improvement Plan in response to the Green Paper published in March 2022. The Plan outlines the government’s mission for the SEND and AP system to fulfil children and young people’s potential, build parent’s trust, and provide financial sustainability.We are developing good practice guidance to support consistent, timely, high-quality transitions for children and young people with SEND and in AP. This will look at transitions between all stages of education from early years and will focus initially on transitions into and out of post-16 settings. This includes transitions into higher education, employment, adult services, and for young people leaving AP at the end of key stage 4, building on learning from the recent Alternative Provision Transition Fund.The government is committed to supporting pathways to employment for disabled learners, including through strengthening the Supported Internship programme. We are investing approximately £18 million until 2025 to build capacity in the Supported Internships Programme and support more young people with education, health and care (EHC) plans into employment. The Internships Work consortium has been appointed as the delivery partner for this investment. They will be working closely with local authorities to double the number of supported internships per year by 2025 and will engage with all partners in the system to level up the quality of internships across the country. Over 700 job coaches will be trained by 2025 to ensure interns receive high-quality support on their work placements.In the Spring Budget 2023, my right hon. Friend, the Chancellor of the Exchequer announced up to £3 million to pilot extending Supported Internships to young people with learning difficulties and disabilities, but without EHC plans.To further help with preparation for adulthood, the department is supporting the Department for Work and Pensions to develop an Adjustments Passport that will help to smooth the transition into employment and support people changing jobs, including for people with Down’s syndrome and other forms of SEND. The Adjustments Passport will capture the in-work support needs of the individual and empower them to have confident discussions about adjustments with employers.

Restoration and Renewal Client Board

Palace of Westminster: Repairs and Maintenance

Alan Brown: To ask the hon. Member for Broxbourne, representing the Restoration and Renewal Client Board, what the estimated cost is for drone surveys associated with the restoration and renewal project.

Sir Charles Walker: The R&R Programme is carrying out tens of thousands of hours of complex building surveys and investigations to develop even more detailed records of the Palace of Westminster. These records are being used to inform design and planning, and future decisions on the essential restoration work required.  Two intrusive surveys, the Photogrammetric and Heating, Ventilation and Air-Conditioning (HVAC) surveys, have recently started which contain an element of drone surveys as well as other activities such as high-resolution photography. The total estimated cost of these surveys is £1 million although this covers a number of activities. Due to how the activity schedules in these contracts are priced it is not possible to disaggregate the costs of the drone flights from the rest of the works being undertaken. However, it is anticipated that a significant portion of the costs will relate to the contractor resource required to deliver the surveys and the processing of the images taken (rather than the cost of the drones themselves). This figure also does not include Delivery Authority internal staffing costs or the costs of the contractor planning and overseeing the overall survey programme because those costs cannot be disaggregated by individual survey.

Department for Work and Pensions

Statutory Sick Pay

Martyn Day: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether his Department has made a recent assessment of the adequacy of the eligibility criteria for statutory sick pay for people who work 12-hour shifts and whose working week is condensed into three days.

Tom Pursglove: Statutory Sick Pay (SSP) is the minimum that employers must pay to eligible individuals during a period of sickness absence. Many employers decide to pay more, and for longer, through Occupational Sick Pay. Eligibility to SSP is based upon an individual’s earnings from employment, rather than the number of hours they work. SSP is paid from the fourth qualifying day (days an employee usually works) of work missed. The first three qualifying days in a period of absence are known as waiting days. To be eligible to receive SSP, an individual must have been incapable of work for at least four days in a row, including non-working days. The Government is continuing to keep the SSP system under review.

Jobcentres: Disability

Vicky Foxcroft: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, with reference to the policy paper entitled Transforming Support: The Health and Disability White Paper, published on 15 March 2023, whether his Department is taking steps to consult with disabled people on the development of the jobcentre design guide.

Tom Pursglove: The department is committed to improving access and inclusion for colleagues and members of the public through the on-going development of its Jobcentre design guides. The design guides provide the standards for future properties and major refurbishments of existing sites. In 2021/22, the department commissioned the Civil Service Policy Lab to explore best practice in Jobcentre design for disabled people and those with health conditions. Policy Lab were set up in 2014 to support the Civil Service with specialist expertise to help understand the present, imagine the future, and design ways to achieve the intended policy impact. The aim of the project was to work with experts, staff, and disabled people, to develop recommendations for inclusive design to inform future guidance for Jobcentres. Research included working closely with participants, to better understand their personal ‘lived experiences’. This included in-depth interviews to understand their individual health condition and relationship with the local Jobcentre. The research included an immersive, sensory mapping approach, where the researchers’ joined participants on their journeys to the Jobcentre and around the buildings. Supporting this work, the department also commission a specialist access and inclusion consultant, with property expertise, to oversee changes to guidance. The scope includes improving environments for more people by considering the latest guidance on neurodiversity. Findings and insights from the research are informing the department’s new design guide for Jobcentres. This guidance is currently under development with the in-house design team. Trials will follow on several sites, which will include detailed customer evaluation of all the agreed deliverables. Stakeholder groups will also be involved in finalising this inclusive design guidance. This work forms part of a wider programme of work the department is undertaking to look at, and continue to improve, employment support for disabled people.

Personal Independence Payment: Applications

Vicky Foxcroft: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, with reference to the policy paper entitled Transforming Support: The Health and Disability White Paper published on 15 March 2023, what progress her Department has made in developing a new user-centred service for personal independence payment; what steps it plans to take to test that new service; and when he expects that new service to be ready for roll out to new claimants.

Tom Pursglove: The Health Transformation Programme is developing a new Health Assessment Service and transforming the entire PIP service, including introducing the option to apply online.  The programme is developing the new digital PIP service carefully and incrementally, designing it around the needs of claimants. We have begun offering the new online apply service to a small number of claimants, initially, as we introduce this service gradually and carefully. We have already introduced a digital version of the PIP2 health questionnaire, which is now offered to the majority of those making a claim. The programme is planning to fully evaluate the new services it is developing, using a range of methods. Our approach to evaluating the services will change and evolve as they are developed. Overall, the programme is taking a long-term, phased approach, that will move us away from the current ways we are operating, gradually and carefully. The programme is currently focussed on building the foundations and creating the environment to enable us to begin to transform these services for the future.

Multiple Sclerosis: Personal Independence Payment

Julian Sturdy: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment his Department has made of the adequacy of the (a) 20-metre and (b) 50 per cent rules for assessing the eligibility of people with multiple sclerosis for personal independence payments.

Tom Pursglove: Personal Independence Payment (PIP) is intended to act as a contribution towards the extra costs that arise from needs related to a long-term health condition or disability. Entitlement is assessed on the basis of the needs arising from the health condition or disability, rather than a diagnosis of the health condition or disability itself. The enhanced rate of the Personal Independence Payment mobility component was always intended to be for those "unable" or "virtually unable" to walk. The 20-metre distance was introduced to identify those whose mobility is significantly more limited than that of other people. Individuals who can walk more than 20 metres can still receive the enhanced rate of the mobility component, if they cannot do so safely, to an acceptable standard, repeatedly or in a reasonable time period. We believe the current assessment criteria, including the 20-metre rule, are the best way of identifying people whose physical mobility is most limited and there are no immediate plans to make changes. The PIP assessment should reflect the impact of variations in an individual's level of impairment, including conditions which fluctuate, and whether the individual can complete each activity safely, to an acceptable standard, repeatedly and in a reasonable time period. When choosing the descriptor, the health professional should also consider an individual’s ability over a 12-month period, ensuring that fluctuations are taken into account. For each activity, if a descriptor applies on more than 50 per cent of the days in the 12-month period, that descriptor should be chosen. In general, health professionals should record function over an average year for conditions that fluctuate over months, per week for conditions that fluctuate by the day, and by the day for conditions that vary over a day. The department closely monitors all aspects of the assessment process, including how we assess fluctuating health conditions like multiple sclerosis. There are no current plans to make changes to the 50 per cent rule.

Jobcentres: Autism

Vicky Foxcroft: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, with reference to the policy paper entitled Transforming Support: The Health and Disability White Paper published on 15 March 2023, when the Department expects to make a decision on whether its framework for autistic customers can be rolled out across the whole network of Jobcentres.

Tom Pursglove: Improving the services that Jobcentres deliver to people with autism is a key part of ensuring customers with autism get the support they need, in the way they need it. Our autism accreditation test helped to build the knowledge and skills of our work coaches and improve our processes and systems to better support autistic jobseekers. We are now exploring whether we can roll out this accreditation across the whole Jobcentre network.

Personal Independence Payment

Daisy Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if he will amend assessment criteria for Personal Independence Payment (PIP) to ensure that claimants who are not eligible for PIP but who (a) are eligible or (b) would be eligible for the Limited Capability for Work-Related Activity group can access long term financialsupport.

Tom Pursglove: As part of our proposal for reform, people that are receiving both PIP and UC will receive a new UC health element as part of their claim. However, in today’s benefits system some people who are determined to have LCWRA do not receive PIP. This is also the case for some people that are in the ESA Support Group. For this group, we will carefully consider whether they meet the PIP assessment and eligibility criteria. As we develop our reform proposals, we will consider how disabled people and people with health conditions who need additional financial support may receive it.

Social Security Benefits: Chronic Illnesses and Disability

Daisy Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, with reference to the statement in Transforming Support: The Health and Disability White Paper, published in March 2023, that his Department will begin testing matching people’s primary health condition to a specialist assessor, whether he plans to (a) train existing assessors or (b) recruit additional specialist health assessors to deliver this policy.

Tom Pursglove: We are currently in the early stages of exploring how to test matching people’s primary health condition to a specialist assessor; working with stakeholders and service users to build our understanding of the range of specialisms we need to make available, as well as the improvements we need to make to the assessment process. As part of testing this, assessors will take part in training to specialise in the functional impacts of specific health conditions. We cannot say at this point whether we will recruit additional specialist health assessors to support this testing.

Department for Energy Security and Net Zero

Nuclear Power Stations: Education and Training

Charlotte Nichols: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what steps he plans to take to support (a) education and (b) training to help people gain skills to support the construction, commissioning and operation of new nuclear plants.

Andrew Bowie: As recognised in Powering Up Britain, the Department is working closely with the wider sector and across Government through the Nuclear Skills Strategy Group (NSSG), to deliver a joint strategic plan to provide the future roles and jobs that the sector needs. In parallel, Officials are also involved in wider stakeholder forums and working with other skills organisations, such as the National College for Nuclear, to support these ambitions too.

Nuclear Power: District Heating

Munira Wilson: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what assessment his Department has made of the potential merits of utilising SMRs and other small and medium-sized nuclear projects for the co-generation of heat and power via district heat networks as part of the Great British Nuclear programme.

Andrew Bowie: The Heat Networks and Nuclear teams at the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero oversee potential for utilising nuclear power as a source of energy for heat networks, including collaboration on nuclear power station siting work and its effect on future heat network zones. Heat network zone potential would increase significantly if there were a viable nuclear power source nearby due to the abundance of waste/recovered heat. Government remain up-to-date on international research in this area through the IEA and international partners.

Drax Group: Biofuels

Daisy Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, with reference to the BBC Panorama programme entitled The Green Energy Scandal, whether Ofgem is taking steps to investigate if Drax Group plc were aware that biomass fuels used by them originated from non-sustainable sources; and if he will make a statement.

Graham Stuart: Ofgem undertakes regular audits of Drax’s adherence to their obligations under the Renewables Obligation scheme. As part of ongoing scheme compliance monitoring, an additional assurance audit is underway.

Renewables Obligation

Daisy Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, if he will take steps to ensure that hon. Members can scrutinise the extent to which electricity suppliers comply with the relevant sustainability criteria of the Renewables Obligation scheme administered by Ofgem.

Daisy Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, if he will take steps to ensure that hon. Members can scrutinise the extent to which Ofgem is successfully delivering the Renewables Obligation scheme.

Graham Stuart: Ofgem is accountable to Parliament for all of its activities. It regularly reports on delivery of Government schemes, and publishes annual reports. The Renewables Obligation annual reports set out its administration of the scheme and include information on compliance with the sustainability criteria. The latest report is for 2021/22 and is available at: https://www.ofgem.gov.uk/publications/renewables-obligation-ro-annual-report-scheme-year-20-2021-22.

Department for Energy Security and Net Zero: Disability

Vicky Foxcroft: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what proportion of people employed within his Department have recorded that they have a disability.

Graham Stuart: Department for Energy Security and Net Zero employees remain employed by their previous departments until the new department is established by a Transfer of Functions order. Data for Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) employees can be found below. For BEIS, the proportion of people employed by the Department who recorded that they had a disability was 11% as of 28 February 2023.

Nuclear Power: Carbon Emissions

Mr Jonathan Lord: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what recent assessment he has made of the potential role of nuclear energy in achieving the Government's net zero emissions targets.

Andrew Bowie: The importance of the role of nuclear energy in the Government’s strategy for achieving our net zero emissions targets was most recently set out in our March 2023 policy paper: Powering Up Britain initiatives. This includes our Net Zero Growth Plan, which reiterates the ambition of the 2022 British Energy Security Strategy for deploying up to 24 gigawatts of nuclear by 2050, around 25% of our projected 2050 electricity demand. Modelling for nuclear, which was first published alongside the Energy White Paper 2020, is set out in Table 2, page 24, of the Technical Annex to the Net Zero Growth Plan.

Nuclear Fusion: Energy

Mr Jonathan Lord: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of using nuclear fusion technology to provide energy.

Andrew Bowie: Fusion energy has the potential to be the ultimate clean power solution, representing a low carbon, safe, continuous and sustainable source of energy. Fusion creates more energy per gram than any other process achievable on Earth, and unlike other methods of energy generation such as wind or solar power, does not depend on any external factors, meaning it can be deployed continuously at the point of need. Fusion also offers potential to be one of the most environmentally friendly sources of energy on earth. Its processes require hydrogen and lithium, both of which are widely available in many parts of the world. Moreover, the reaction does not emit any CO2 or other harmful emissions into our atmosphere and fusion power plants are not expected to create the very long-lived, high-level radioactive waste associated with fission. The UK is widely recognised as a world-leader in fusion. To capitalise on this opportunity, the Government is investing over £700m in UK fusion research programmes and facilities over the next three years, and in February announced the formation of UK Industrial Fusion Solutions to deliver the STEP prototype fusion energy plant at West Burton in Nottinghamshire.

Energy Bill Relief Scheme

Mr Jonathan Lord: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what recent assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the Energy Bill Relief Scheme.

Amanda Solloway: The EBRS review assessed a range of qualitative and quantitative evidence from businesses and stakeholders on sectors that may be most affected by rising energy prices based on energy and trade intensity. The results were used alongside results from a BEIS business survey, inputs from other government departments, and wider economic and public policy considerations. The outcome of the review informed the criteria of the new Energy Bills Discount Scheme (EBDS). The EBDS will run from April until March 2024, and will continue to provide a discount to eligible and vulnerable non-domestic customers, except for those experiencing low energy costs.

Alternative Fuel Payments

Mr Jonathan Lord: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what steps he is taking to provide energy bill support to households that use alternative fuels.

Amanda Solloway: The Alternative Fuel Payment (AFP) scheme is delivering £200 to eligible households who use alternative fuels such as heating oil, liquefied petroleum gas, coal or biomass. A small proportion of households who didn’t receive the payment automatically will need to apply for the AFP. Applications for this Alternative Fund opened on 6 March through a GOV.UK portal which includes an overview of eligibility and what steps households need to take to apply for support.

Energy Bills Discount Scheme

Shabana Mahmood: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, whether domestic customers on private wire electricity networks will be included in the Energy Bill Discount Scheme.

Amanda Solloway: The Energy Bill Discount Scheme supports non-domestic consumers with their energy bills, including those supplied via private wire arrangements. Domestic customers on private wire electricity are also eligible to apply for the Energy Bills Support Scheme Alternative Funding (EBSS AF) if they meet the full eligibility requirements, which launched on 27 February and will close on 31 May 2023. Further information can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/non-domestic-alternative-fuel-payment-scheme-great-britain-guidance-for-electricity-suppliers.

UK Emissions Trading Scheme

Alex Norris: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what assessment he has made of the future of the Emissions Trading Scheme.

Graham Stuart: The UK Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS) puts the market at the heart of the Government’s net zero strategy. Last year’s Developing the UK ETS consultation considered improvements to the scheme, including aligning the cap to net zero and expansion to new economic sectors. The ETS Authority will publish a response in due course. In the Net Zero Growth Plan, the Government also accepted the Independent Review of Net Zero recommendation that it set out a long-term pathway for the ETS, including its intention to continue the scheme beyond 2030 until at least 2050, and committed do so later this year.

Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change

Catherine West: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what assessment he has made of the implications for his policies on the UK reaching net zero by 2050 of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change's sixth assessment report.

Graham Stuart: The Government has committed to reaching net zero by 2050. This is in line with the advice of the UK’s independent Climate Change Committee and is consistent with the findings of the IPCC’s Sixth Assessment Report. The Government's recently published Powering Up Britain publication, the Net Zero Growth Plan sets out the policy package to meet Carbon Budgets and the Government's roadmap to net zero.

Weather: Temperature

Catherine West: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what steps his Department is taking to prepare for potential heatwaves in Summer 2023.

Graham Stuart: The Department for Energy Security and Net Zero works closely with network operators, the regulator Ofgem and other stakeholders to ensure that the appropriate technical measures are able to be deployed throughout the year to ensure the integrity of the energy system. Great Britain’s electricity infrastructure is highly resilient and designed to operate in hot weather. In the event that energy infrastructure is impacted by extreme heat, the energy sector has long-standing plans and procedures to respond and repair any damage to infrastructure.

Natural Gas and Oil: Licensing

Catherine West: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, if he will take steps to end the licensing of new oil and gas developments in the UK.

Graham Stuart: When the UK reaches net zero in 2050, it is estimated that the UK will still use a quarter of the gas it does now, although this will be fully abated by technologies like Carbon Capture Utilisation and Storage. Even with new licensing, UK production is projected to fall by 7% per year. Instead of ending all new licensing, the Government has implemented a Climate Compatibility Checkpoint, assessing whether new licensing is compatible with the UK’s climate targets. This is a better tool for supporting the Government's climate change objectives than an arbitrary cut-off, as the checkpoint incentivises concrete decarbonisation action from industry.

Carbon Emissions: Local Government

Nick Fletcher: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, how many grants were awarded to local authorities for net zero projects in the last twelve months; and what the total value of those grants was.

Graham Stuart: The Government provides a wide range of funding to support local authorities in reaching net zero. Through their core settlement, grant funding schemes, and UK growth funding, the Government is enabling local authorities to tackle net zero goals. The Government has established the UK Infrastructure Bank with an initial £12 billion of capital for the twin goals of tackling climate change and levelling-up. This includes a loan facility for local government to deliver net zero.

Energy: Prices

Mike Amesbury: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, whether his Department has made an assessment of the potential impact of the proposed hydrogen levy on the level of fuel bills; and if he will make a statement.

Graham Stuart: The precise impact of a new hydrogen levy on energy bills will depend on future policy design choices and market conditions. This means there is currently uncertainty regarding possible consumer bill impacts. The Government will consult on the detailed levy design before laying regulations that introduce the levy. The Government intends to publish an Impact Assessment alongside the first set of regulations that is expected to provide information on the potential impacts of the levy on consumers’ energy bills.

Hydrogen: Taxation

Mike Amesbury: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, if he will make it his policy to remove the proposed hydrogen levy in the Energy Bill.

Graham Stuart: There are no plans to remove the proposed hydrogen levy from the Energy Bill. The purpose of the levy is to provide long-term funding for the hydrogen production business model. This could unlock significant private sector capital by 2030, create thousands of jobs, grow CCUS and hydrogen supply chains, and deliver carbon savings which help meet net zero. The provisions in the Bill will not immediately introduce a levy. They will only enable Government to introduce a levy through secondary legislation. The decision to introduce the levy will take into account all relevant considerations, including energy bill affordability.

Boiler Upgrade Scheme

Mike Amesbury: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, whether underspend from the first year of the Boiler Upgrade Scheme will be returned to the Treasury.

Graham Stuart: The Boiler Upgrade Scheme (BUS) budget is £450 million, split equally over three financial years (2022-2025). The Government explored options to carry over unused budget from year 1 of the scheme, but due to the accounting rules for capital spending, the Government does not expect this to be possible and the underspend will be returned to HM Treasury.

Energy: Companies

Julian Sturdy: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what assessment he has made of the potential environmental impact of multi-national energy companies emitting large amounts of CO2 into the atmosphere.

Graham Stuart: The Government has made no such assessment.

Alternative Fuel Payments

Justin Madders: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, whether his Department is taking steps to ensure that people who are eligible for the Alternative fuel payment are not digitally-excluded from the application process.

Amanda Solloway: Eligible applicants to the Alternative Fuel Payment Alternative Fund without online access can apply via the contact centre helpline which can reached on 0808 175 3943. When contacting the helpline, a representative will guide them through the application process. The helpline is open 8am to 6pm on Monday to Friday.

Housing: Energy

Rachael Maskell: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what recent assessment he has made of the adequacy of the availability of skills to (a) maintain and (b) retrofit homes and other buildings to (i) allow them to retain more heat and (ii) make them more sustainable.

Graham Stuart: The Each Home Counts review recommended the introduction of an overarching standards framework for end-to-end delivery of retrofit, as well as the establishment of a Government-endorsed quality mark to ensure consumer protection and redress. This is why the Government requires that installations under Government retrofit schemes are carried out in accordance with Publicly Available Specifications (PAS) 2035, by a PAS 2030 and TrustMark registered installer. PAS 2030 certification requires installers to be assessed against competency requirements by an accredited Certification Body. This includes undertaking relevant training to demonstrate competency, for example an NVQ Level 3 in insulation and building treatments for installers.

Housing: Renewable Energy

Rachael Maskell: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what information his Department holds on how many homes have (a) solar panels, (b) heat pumps and (c) other renewable energy sources in (i) York and (ii) England; and what steps he plans to take to help increase those figures.

Graham Stuart: (a) From the latest solar PV deployment report, at the end of February 2023 there were 3,918 domestic solar PV installations recorded in York Central and York Outer parliamentary constituencies, and over 930,000 domestic solar PV installations recorded in England. (b) The Microgeneration Certification Scheme Installations Database shows that up to the end of February 2023 a total of 391 heat pumps were installed in York Central and York Outer parliamentary constituencies, and 140,853 heat pumps were installed in England. The database covers heat pump installations in both domestic and non-domestic properties, but those installed without Government funding support and those in new buildings are not typically included. (c) From the Central FiT Register statistics, there were 7 other domestic renewable electricity installations recorded in York Central and York Outer parliamentary constituencies, and 2,720 other domestic renewable electricity installations recorded in England when the FIT scheme closed to new entrants in March 2019. The Government does not hold data separately to identify domestic non-solar PV renewable electricity installations after that date. To help increase the deployment of energy efficiency measures and low carbon heating, the Government is investing over £6.6bn over this parliament, in schemes like the Boiler Upgrade Scheme, and has committed a further £6bn from 2025 to 2028.

Renewable Energy

Rachael Maskell: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what steps his Department is taking to encourage microgeneration of energy within the UK.

Graham Stuart: The Government supports microgeneration projects through a number of different mechanisms. For electricity generators, the Government introduced the Smart Export Guarantee, a market-led system that ensures eligible suppliers pay small-scale renewable electricity generators for any electricity exported back to the grid. For heat generators, the Government offers the Boiler Upgrade Scheme, a grant of up to £6000 (dependent on technology) towards the replacement of gas boilers for air and ground sourced heat pumps and biomass boilers. Ofgem also supports microgeneration through community energy projects and welcomes applications from community interest groups to the Industry Voluntary Redress Scheme.

Warm Home Discount Scheme: Park Homes

Cat Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, whether residents of houseboats in marinas are eligible for the Park Homes Warm Home Discount Scheme.

Amanda Solloway: Only residents living in a park home can apply for a rebate under the Park Homes Warm Home Discount.

Climate Change: Demonstrations

Cat Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, whether his Department has had recent discussions with young climate activists.

Graham Stuart: Ministers regularly meet with external stakeholders. Details of ministerial meetings with external organisations are published quarterly and can be found on GOV.UK at: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/beis-ministerial-gifts-hospitality-travel-and-meetings. The latest published data covers October to December 2022. Further data is due to be published shortly. In line with Cabinet Office guidance, organisations are listed instead of individuals.

Tidal Power

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what steps his Department is taking to increase the UK's tidal energy capacity.

Graham Stuart: Tidal stream companies are eligible to apply for the Contracts for Difference (CfD) scheme, the UK’s main mechanism for supporting low-carbon generation. Tidal stream projects are also eligible for a suite of research funding programmes including the UK Research and Innovation matched Horizon funding. Tidal stream and tidal range are included in the scope of the draft National Policy Statement (NPS) for Energy published in March 2023.

Department for Transport

Avanti West Coast

Damien Moore: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will make an assessment of the potential impact of renewing the contract with Avanti West Coast on operational performance on that line.

Huw Merriman: Avanti West Coast has put in place a recovery plan which has already seen positive results, with more trains running for passengers and fewer Avanti West Coast caused cancellations. Weekday services have risen from 180 to 264 trains per day, the highest level in over two years. Cancellation rates have fallen from around 25% to 4.2%, the lowest level in 12 months. In addition, over 100 additional drivers have been recruited to reduce reliance on union-controlled overtime working.Avanti West Coast is expected to continue to adhere to the plan and drive further improvement following the decision to grant a short-term contract extension. Officials will continue to use all contractual levers to drive the best outcomes for passengers. Performance will be closely monitored ahead of any decision on the longer-term operation of the contract.

Avanti West Coast: Contracts

Justin Madders: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment criteria his Department used when it decided to extend the Avanti West Coast contract for a further six months.

Huw Merriman: The Department objectively assessed whether the extension was appropriate against the relevant criteria set out in the Secretary of State’s public facing section 26 policy statement. In doing so the Department took into account Avanti West Coast's delivery against its agreed recovery plans in place with both the Department and the Office of Rail and Road, and the improvements in operational performance over recent months. Weekday services have risen from 180 to 264 trains per day, the highest level in over two years. Cancellation rates have fallen from around 25% to 4.2%, the lowest level in 12 months. In addition, over 100 additional drivers have been recruited to reduce reliance on union-controlled overtime working.

Attorney General

Attorney General: Disability

Vicky Foxcroft: To ask the Attorney General, what proportion of their Department's employees are recorded as having a disability.

Michael Tomlinson: As of 31st March 2023, the proportion of employees in the Attorney General’s Office recorded as having a disability was 5%.